Burn to the Ground
by TalesOfFanfiction
Summary: The rebellion after the Third Quarter Quell failed. The Capitol remained in power and continued to have control over the districts. Seventy-five years later, it is now time for the Sixth Quarter Quell. This year, however, it is not just the lives of the tributes that are at risk. The tributes will have to fight hard, for if they lose, they won't be the only ones to die.
1. Prologue: The Sixth Quarter Quell

**Damien Brand's POV – Head Gamemaker **

"Mr. Brand, the president is ready to meet with you. If you will walk this way please. He is waiting in his office." The president's assistant informed me as she pointed down a hallway.

I nodded silently as I walked down the hallway. I didn't know why I was here nor did I want to be here. This was the year of the sixth Quarter Quell, the one-hundred fiftieth Hunger Games. This was an important time of the year and the Games needed to be grand! I didn't have time to waste: I needed to be working on the arena and meeting with my fellow gamemakers. I shouldn't be going to talk with this useless oaf of a president!

Perhaps my meeting with the president could be about the games, but I doubt it. President Verich Draven was the kind of person who seemed to not give a shit about anything. I have no clue how the man even came to his position! I realize that he is popular with the general population, as he spends most of his time out in the public, making a mockery of pretty much anything, but he is a poor politician who has done nothing to improve the quality of life in Panem. He's a disgrace to the government that he represents!

The sooner I get out of this meeting, the better. Then I can get back to my passion – arena design and construction. I've been working as a gamemaker for the past forty-two years. I had started as soon as I completed my studies at eighteen and quickly grew to love my job more than anything. This would be the second quarter quell that I directly worked on. This time, however, I was the head gamemaker. Everything had to be perfect. Everything was going to be perfect! This year's games would be my magnum opus!

After making my way down the hallway, I entered the president's office. President Draven was sitting down in his desk. He was a tall, muscular man who appeared bigger than his desk and the office in general. He was playing with a knife in his left hand as I walked in.

"Ah, Damien. Have a seat." He said absent-mindedly, not even glancing in my direction.

I snorted as I took a seat in front of his desk. "I didn't realize we were on a first-name basis."

The president immediately slammed the knife on to his desk. I suppose that was an attempt to startle or intimidate me, but I did not flinch.

"Ah, Damien, I've been president for four years now and we've been working together ever since on the Hunger Games!" He commented with a loud laugh.

"What do you want?" I asked impatiently with an eye roll.

President Draven frowned in response to my question, but he also stared at me intently. It felt as if the man was glaring at me.

"My, you seem irritated today Damien. Usually you try to be more subtle with your distaste for me." He commented as he picked up the knife again with his right hand. He began to play with it again, tossing it back and forth between his right and left hand.

"The preparations for the Quarter Quell are underway. Forgive me if I seem a little stressed about them. They're kinda a big deal here, you know." I respond with another eye roll.

"Oh yes, I agree. One hundred and fifty years of Hunger Games! That is actually why I called you here." He replied.

"Seriously?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

The president stopped playing with his knife. He gripped it tightly as he stared at me intently. He then chucked it at my head, barely missing my head. The knife impaled on the door that was right behind me.

My eyes widened in shock as I turned my head to face the knife in the door. My heart was starting to beat irregularly and my breathing became harder. _Did he just try to kill me?_

"Just barely missed you…I guess I could work on my aim more! Need more practice!" President Draven laughed cheerily. I turned to face him, surprise evident in my eyes. As soon as he realized I was looking at him, his laughing stopped. His eyes tightened and his mouth turned into a scowl. "Look, Gamemaker Brand, I realize you don't like me. I don't like you either. Your comments about me in your interviews during the election nearly cost me my seat! My reputation with the public is nearly perfect with the exception of your public distaste for me." The man's glare intensified. "Believe me, I can kill you at any moment and I would honestly enjoy it. The day you die will be one of the happiest days of my life."

He opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out another knife. My eyes widened further. _Shit…this can't be how it ends!_ Not now! Not before the Quarter Quell…

"The only reason I never personally killed you after I became president was one for one very simple reason. Can you guess what that is?" He asked me curiously.

Realizing that I was not in danger of dying, I sighed in relief. A few seconds passed before I answered his question. "Is it because of the Hunger Games?"

"Indeed. You are probably are aware with your fame. The Games that you have designed as Head Gamemaker have been the most exciting ones in years. The capitol citizens have been thrilled! They are even calling you the best gamemaker of all time! You clearly have a lot of fans." The president noted.

I snorted at that. _Bah_. Perhaps I enjoyed the little 'fanclub' that developed for me thirty years ago, but I'm a sixty year old man. Why do I still have fans? I'm married and I already have grandkids! I don't need any more people in my life, let alone anyone in my 'fanclub'.

President Draven stood up and walked over to me. He then placed the blade of the knife at my neck. Immediately I felt my breathing become harder.

"We need an extravagant Quarter Quell. It'll have been seventy-five years since the districts tried to rebel during the Third Quarter Quell. It was handled appropriately before anything drastic happened, but I can't help but be paranoid of something like that happening again. I want this year's Quarter Quell to scare the district citizens into quiet subservience again. The arena needs to be deadly. The competition needs to be fierce. And the deaths of the district children need to be glorious."

The President removed the knife from my throat. "If this year's Games is exactly what I want, I suppose I can forget about all of the political attacks you have made against me in the past four years. But can I trust you to create the perfect Hunger Games?"

_Perfect…Hunger Games?_

The fear I had about losing my life had completely vanished. A grin quickly developed on my face. This was nothing more than a challenge to me! A normal man may have been intimidated by the pressure of the president's threat, but I was no normal man. I really was the greatest gamemaker that Panem has ever seen! I have been working on arenas for the past forty-two years. My life has been dedicated to creating perfect Hunger Games arenas. This year would be no exception.

This challenge would be my inspiration. This year would really be my greatest work!

"You can trust me." I answered immediately. My grin intensified. I'm sure I appeared to look maniacal.

"Excellent!" President Draven smiled at me as he walked back to his desk. He sat down happily and started to toss his knife back-and-forth between his hands. "I just wanted to make sure you would do your best."

I nodded. Presuming that was my dismissal, I proceeded to get up from chair and was preparing to leave the room.

"Damien, we aren't finished yet. I had something else to inform you." The president commented.

I turned back to face him. Making a mental note of the president's dislike for me, I resisted the urge to eye roll and sat down again.

"I was simply going to inform you about the twist for this year's Quarter Quell. I'm making the announcement in one week, so I'm sure everything will be pretty chaotic after that! I just thought you would be interesting in knowing beforehand." He informed me.

"Really? What is it?" I asked. I attempted to sound indifferent, but my voice betrayed my attempts and conveyed my curiosity.

"Well, I am going to say this to you: the district children will not know what the twist is. This year's twist would discourage most tributes, even careers, from volunteering so I'd rather they not know until moments before they are sent into the arena. They won't find out what it is until their interviews." President Draven explained.

I nodded in understanding. "Then what is this twist?"

The president's face developed into a wide, sinister grin. The sight of it actually made me shudder slightly. "We are going to observe the interactions of the reaped tributes and their visitors before they board the train as well as investigate into their personal lives. From our investigations, we will pick one person, the most important person in their lives, and then tie their lives together. When the tribute dies, so will the person that is most important to them." The president's eyes widened, as if realizing something. "I guess that means the death toll for this year's Hunger Games will be forty-six, won't it?"

This Quarter Quell…no one is safe. This is the first time where the lives of people not in the arena are at risk along with the people inside it. This will bring out fight in tributes that has previously not been seen. The stakes are higher than they have ever been!

I couldn't stop myself from laughing. "Oh my god! This really is going to be the best Hunger Games of all time!"

* * *

**Well hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the prologue chapter for my first story, **_**Burn to the Ground**_**. This is something that I have been planning for a while and I'm excited to finally start this! **

**That's all I really have to say for now. I'll be back later with an update! Send in your tributes please! I am so excited to start this and I can't wait to see what you all think of my plans! I'll see you all later! **


	2. Tribute List

District 1 Male: Ariail Bardineux: 17 (J-Hope)

District 1 Female: Kendra Perone: 18 (LokiThisIsMadness)

District 2 Male: Lepolio Huang: 18 (runasfastasyoucan)

District 2 Female: Victoire McBlock: 17 (AlisonBlock)

District 3 Male: Ethan Neurus: 13 (RainEpelt)

District 3 Female: Kaylee Harper: 18 (ToxicatedRose)

District 4 Male: Cascade Bolt: 15 (YoshiMaster736)

District 4 Female: Alaska Dayte: 17 (HarryEverdeen12934)

District 5 Male: Icarus Bolt: 17 (Phoenix764)

District 5 Female: Stephanie Volk: 16 (RJB4)

District 6 Male: Booker Comston: 18 (RJB4)

District 6 Female: Alexandra Varas: 17 (DryBonesKing)

District 7 Male: Raegae Oak: 17 (RainEpelt)

District 7 Female: Winnie Goldstein: 12 (aprilgirl01)

District 8 Male: Xander Lugar: 13 (ZJB3)

District 8 Female: Raven Bell: 13 (Annabeth-TheTributeThatLived)

District 9 Male: Jason Icarus: 18 (grimbutnotalways)

District 9 Female: Demetriana "Demi" Walser: 18 (Fifidear)

District 10 Male: Logan Faber: 17 (Namelessghoul)

District 10 Female: Maddison Holland: 16 (RainEpelt)

District 11 Male: Bane Darnel: 17 (Krayg)

District 11 Female: Florina Everett: 15 (hollowman96

District 12 Male: Yaro Hailstien: 18 (ZazzyZ)

District 12 Female: Emery Aspen: 16 (Bookieworm04)


	3. The Reaping: Crime and Survival

**District 6**

**Alexandra Varas's POV – District 6 Female**

The moon shone brightly in the sky over the district. It was around midnight and most of the citizens were lying in their beds, trying to go to sleep. Children and adults were cowering in fear due to the reaping later in the day. It was completely understandable. There was a certain level of ambiguity that revolved around a quarter quell with an unannounced twist. Perhaps I should be concerned as well, but I would be concerned at a later time.

For now, I was focused on my goal: breaking and entering into the mayor's house. I had been planning this heist for months now and I was not going to mess this up! I was not going to let all that time of careful observation and study go to waste!

Thievery was probably not the safest way to make money, but I couldn't help myself. Being born in a family of five meant that money was a constantly scarce resource. People had to do what they had to do to survive. So, I did. I had been a thief since the age of fourteen and I had no intentions of stopping. Being quick, being quiet, being able to blend into your surroundings and hide yourself from observers and your target: all these skills came naturally to me. It was a high risk occupation, but it came with a high reward. And, if I were being completely honest with myself, I enjoyed the thrill and challenge of it.

I quickly and quietly made my way through the alleys of the district. Minutes passed before I reached my destination. The mayor's house was nothing spectacular compared to what I have heard the houses were like in the career districts, let alone the capitol. Still, it was large compared to its surroundings. It was two floors and made entirely of red brick with large, glass windows on the side of the walls.

The mayor had a daughter about my age. I think her name was Amber? I don't really remember – I didn't care much for people outside of my family. Regardless, in preparation for my mission, I attempted to befriend her. These attempts were successful and I was rewarded with a visit inside the house. I memorized every little detail that I could in order to ensure a flawless heist.

I also made a note of all the beautiful, beautiful merchandise that I could sell for a hefty profit on the black market. Or perhaps I could keep a few. How many items could I steal from this place?

Immediately as those thoughts entered my mind, I shook my head. Over the course of my time as a thief, I developed into a kleptomaniac. Sometimes I would walk away with items that I simply could not sell: I had stolen them simply because I had wanted to take them in the moment. Perhaps I could get away with it somewhere else, but not when I'm attempting to hit the mayor's house! I needed to minimize the chances of getting caught!

With that determination in my mind, I rushed over to the window nearest the front door…

* * *

The day began too early in my honest opinion. By the time I had completed my heist and sold a few items on the black market, the sun was already rising. Damn. Another night with no sleep…

I can't complain too much though. The mayor's house really was a treasure-trove of merchandise. I had managed to steal many jewels, pictures, and family heirlooms and was able to sell them for a high profit. I had made enough money to cover at least two months of expenditures for my family!

I really should have hit the mayor's place sooner!

Once the sun started to rise and I had completed all my duties, I rushed back home. It was a small, plain, little shack with only three rooms: a main room that doubled as a living room and kitchen, a bedroom that my whole family shared, and one bathroom. As I entered the front door and into the main room, I noticed that my mother and my sister, Anna, were already awake, preparing breakfast. They quickly turned their attention to me when I entered the house.

"Another late night?" Anna asked in surprise as she stared at me.

"Mhmm." I answered with a yawn. My response earned a glare from my mother.

"Goodness Alexandra, if you are going to be out, can you at least let me know the day beforehand? None of us have any clue where you run off too and I can't help but feel worried sick!"

A chuckle escapes my mouth. My mother had a habit of worrying about too many little details. I've been doing this for three years. You would think she should know not to worry about me!

"Relax, I'm fine. And I'll always be fine. No need to stress yourself out." I consoled her.

My mother calmed down slightly. She could never be angry at someone for too long. It's a trait that I respected.

"Still, you could let us know when you are going to be out all-night. Where do you even go anyway?" She questioned in a lighter tone.

"Work. I told you before: the factory I work at has late hours and I am usually assigned those times." I answered with an eye-roll.

No one in my family knew that I was a thief. I had a feeling they would try to discourage it. The concern for my safety would be appreciated, but I would rather not deal with it. I was the one who brought home the most money after all!

"Have you ever thought of asking for better hours? Maybe if you ask really nicely, they'll help you out." Anna suggested innocently.

"Not happening." I dismissed her suggestion with a snort as I dug into my pockets for the money. I had everything put in a small white envelope. "The job pays too well to quit."

I tossed the envelope over to my mother. She hesitantly opened it and looked inside. Her eyes widened exponentially.

"This…this is…" My mother's eyes started to tear up. "I don't think I've ever seen this much money…"

"What's this about money?"

Our eyes turned towards the bedroom door. My father walked out of the room, followed by my brother Frederick. Father was gripping his back tightly, so Frederick was walking carefully behind him in case he needed help. He worked in a factory that helped produce train tracks and the hard labor he did everyday was starting to take its toll on his back.

My mother immediately rushed over to him, gripping the envelope tightly. Tears were still visible in her eye. "Aster, look. Look at how much money Alexandra made!"

Father took one look into the envelope before he started to grin.

"Alex, you are a miracle worker!" He exclaimed with a loud, cheerful laugh.

"Don't call me Alex." I rolled my eyes. I hated being called 'Alex'. I was born with the name Alexandra, so I did not understand why someone would call me any other name than that.

Father knew I hated that nickname. He simply called me it out of jest. He continued to laugh.

"Seriously, I have no idea how you do this. I don't know any factory that pays their workers this much! Your boss, whoever he is, is quite the generous man!" He exclaimed.

"He is." I answered with a smile.

"…you still don't tell us any information about what you do, or who your boss is. I hope you are not killing people or prostituting yourself or something." Frederick commented with a shrug.

"Frederick!" My mother yelled. "This is your little sister you're talking about! Don't make false accusations like that!"

"I'm not accusing her of anything! I'm just curious. I'd be interested in getting a job at this place if it really is legal and pays as well as she says it does." My brother responded defensively.

"I don't really know if they're hiring, but I'll ask my boss if he can hire anyone else." I answer politely.

My brother nods, accepting the answer. I know my brother. Generally speaking, he is not that smart and tends to forget things. He just finds things curious in the moment. Before the day ends, he will forget we had this conversation about my job. Hell, he'll probably forget that I even brought home the money!

Shortly after, our family has breakfast. Mother serves everyone eggs: the first home-cooked meal we've had in weeks. It was a tradition that we had to eat something good for the reaping in case if anyone was reaped. Even though I was the only one with a chance to get reaped, as Anna and Frederick were now over eighteen, it was still a tradition we had. And honestly, I enjoyed it. It was good to have a decent home-cooked meal from time to time.

After I finished eating, I looked at the members of my family. My father was telling some joke to Frederick and Anna. The two of them were laughing loudly, with Frederick accidently spitting out some of the eggs in his mouth. Mother quickly scolded him, but she herself was laughing both at my father's joke and my brother's reaction.

I smiled as I chuckled slightly and participated in the conversation. I wasn't much of a people person, but I was definitely had a special place for my family. I would do anything for them…

**Booker Comston's POV – District 6 Male **

"DAMMIT!"

I woke up from my nap at the sound of a loud voice. Immediately upon waking up, I rushed into the living room in the direction of the voice. As I walked into the room, I saw my father. He was dressed in his uniform: the standard outfit of the peacekeepers. He was putting on his helmet when he noticed me. Normally, my father was a kind and gentle person. Right now, he looked anything but kind: he was red with anger.

"What's going on father?" I asked him.

"That damn thief is at it again! He broke into the mayor's house and robbed the place!" My father hissed.

A scowl developed on my face. _Thief._ I hate thieves. I hate all kinds of criminals. My father shares that same hatred. Crime has led to the death of our family. My mother and sister were killed by a morphling dealer two years ago. They were in the wrong place at the wrong time and witnessed a morphling exchange. The dealer, to silence any potential witnesses, killed them and hid their bodies in a dark alley before running away.

To this day, I remember being with my father when we found their bodies. I never felt so depressed; never so numb. The depression didn't end until I started doing my own private investigation to find the dealer, and the numbness only started to fade once I personally killed the man who stole my mother and sister from me with my bare hands.

I instinctively cracked my knuckles before questioning my father. "How much was taken?"

"The mayor isn't certain, but he wants me and the other peacekeepers in my division to head over there and investigate." He informed me. He then glared at me. "And before you ask, you can't come today. It's going to be a long investigation. I doubt you'll have time to head to the reaping before we finish."

I nodded in understanding, but the scowl did not leave my face. "When you finish the investigation, let me know about any evidence you find. I have a theory and I wish to talk to you more about it."

My father nodded before he bolted towards the door. "Will do. You take care Booker. I'll see you sometime later tonight. Good luck at the reaping!"

With those words, my father ran out of the house towards the mayor's house. With my father gone, I quickly rushed over to my room and dug into a box of files underneath my bed.

There is a common stigma associated with peacekeepers. They 'keep peace' as seen by the Capitol, but they don't do anything in actuality. They were, as the common citizen would say, corrupt human beings who seek profit rather than justice and peace. That is false, but I do recognize one truth in that concept. The peacekeepers cannot do everything. There are often too many cases for them to handle, some of which are meaningless dribble that the Capitol assigns to them. This means they can't properly handle the true crime that is happening in the districts.

Being raised by a peacekeeper and having access to any equipment that my father owns, I know precisely how to conduct a private investigation. With the tools I have and the personal knowledge of what criminals do the common people, I made it my responsibility to properly 'punish' all criminals in the district. I look into reported crimes of the district, conduct investigation, track down the culprit, and…handle them appropriately.

I pulled out a set of files I had on a thieving epidemic in the district out of my box. There has been a thief that has been robbing people for the past three years. What makes this incident special is that the peacekeepers still haven't caught the thief. In other larceny cases, the thief is usually caught before the day ends and they are handled with appropriately by the peacekeepers. This case was different. This particular thief has been able to avoid detection despite the constant heists. It has gotten to the point where not even the mayor of our district is safe!

Since my father and the other peacekeepers cannot track the thief down, it is my responsibility to bring this criminal justice…and I plan on doing that to her!

"Alexandra Varas…" I mumble the name to myself as I pull out a paper filled with witness testimonies from the victims of the heists.

She is a young woman with dark blue eyes and brown hair that goes down to her neck. She's a tan girl of average height that is thin due to, from what I can presume, a slight case of malnutrition. She is also the only potential link between the most recent heists.

In my own investigations, I have learned that a young woman that looks similar matches her description has usually been to the spots of the heist beforehand. Whether it is a butcher shop, a factory, or even a peacekeeper's house, the testimony remains the same: the victims give me a list of people that they remember seeing in the prior two days. And each one has given me a description of Ms. Varas.

I did some more personal investigation into her. She lives with her parents and her older brother and sister. I also learned the occupations of all members of the family. She has no recorded job, and the rest of her family does not earn enough money to maintain a life for five people. Despite this, they seem to be functioning well. While the family is poor, they are able to pay their rent and bills each and every time. The last late payment, according to their landowner, was three years ago, prior to the heists…

I need more decisive evidence before I do anything to her, but I am completely certain that she is the thief that has been plaguing our district.

…_I need more evidence. Something needs to be done about her fast!_

With that thought in mind, I placed the files back in the box and moved it back underneath my bed. I then left my room and my house. Father did not want me to help him with his investigation for now, and I'll respect his wishes. But I needed to find some way to gain some information…

"Hmm…perhaps I should go confront my suspect." I suggested to myself as I walked towards the poorer section of District Six.

All crime must be stopped. This thief must be caught. Therefore, I needed to go and find any possible form of evidence that I can find!

**Alexandra Varas's POV – District 6 Female**

"I will see you all after the reaping!" I told my parents and siblings as I left to get to the reaping on time.

The walk to the center of the district was longer than usual. It didn't help me that I was tired. I really needed to get some more sleep tonight. Considering the success of my last heist, I probably didn't need to go out to try and make some money for at least a few weeks. I was just going to try and get as much sleep as I could.

In addition to being long, the walk was uneventful. I watched as younger children ran past me as they hurried off to the reaping with miserable expressions. They all wanted to get the day over with. District Six was, usually, rather upbeat in comparison to the other districts. Today, however, was a solemn day. Not much happiness could be felt on a day like the reaping.

"Excuse me, Ms. Varas." A voice called out to me, interrupting me from my train of thought.

My eyes narrowed at the sound of the voice and I cursed slightly under my breath. I turned and saw a young man that I had recently met: Booker Comston. He was a tall, muscular boy with a pale skin complexion. He had short dark brown hair and he always had a serious expression on his face. He was the son of a peacekeeper and acted as a wannabe-peacekeeper of sorts.

"What do you want Booker?" I asked irritably. "In case you forgot, today is the day of the reaping. We both need to be going there!"

"I realize. Care for some company on the way?" He asked in a calm, collected voice.

I was starting to feel more awake. I only met him a few weeks ago and he spent the entire time asking me questions about my personal life and the life of my family. He was a giant creep and I didn't want to know what he wanted to do with my company.

"Honestly, no." I answered as I started to walk off.

"Well, we are both heading in the same direction, so I hope you don't mind me imposing anyway." Booker responded in the same tone-of-voice.

I sighed in frustration. I did not want to deal with Booker right now. I've seen him around and he does more than just ask me and other people personal questions. The boy is with his peacekeeper father whenever at 'the scene of the crime' whenever anything happens in the district. He had recently been showing up at the scenes of my most recent heists, and about one week ago, he started his questioning of me and started to stalk me.

I'm a cautious and suspicious person in general. My gut is usually correct. And, right now, I had a strong gut feeling that Booker suspected me of being the thief that I was.

"Booker, I really am not in the mood to talk right now. We can meet up at a later time." I hissed at him as I started to walk faster.

"Why not now? We have time to kill Ms. Varas." He stated. His voice was starting to sound more forceful and colder. "There is actually something I need to ask you about."

On instinct, I started to run. I realized that this probably made me look more suspicious to him, but I was not in the mood right now to deal with his crap. I'll deal with him later. For now, I was tired and I did not want to converse with him until I was more awake and, therefore, would have a more-awake mind to squirm out of his suspicions.

Booker started to run and follow after me, but I was faster. It didn't take long for me to lose him. The second I realized I had lost him, I sighed in relief before heading off, once again, to the center stage of town for the reaping.

**Booker Comston's POV – District 6 Male**

"Shit!" I couldn't hold back my curse as I lost her. The girl got away from me.

She's fast. Really fast. Perhaps if I had a weapon on me, I'd continue pursuing her in the hopes that she would tire out. But, unfortunately, I did not. In the end, I guess it didn't matter. I can't do anything to her right now. I don't have my decisive evidence yet.

I'll let her get away this time, for now. But once I have guaranteed evidence that proves my theory, I'll continue my pursuit. And she won't get away!

"Hey, why were you chasing her?" A voice questioned me.

I turned around and saw a girl my age approach me. She had short red hair that went down to her back and she had bright green eyes. She was dressed up in a blue dress for the reaping that really complimented her.

_She was beautiful…_

"N-No reason. I thought she was somebody else and I was wrong." I told the girl lamely. I cursed under my breath as I felt my cheeks redden in color.

"Oh, okay. I thought that was your girlfriend or something! A handsome man like you should be heading to the reaping with a girl at your side!" She commented with a smile that made me blush further.

"I would if I had one, but I don't have a girlfriend." I answered with a slight frown.

It was something that had always bothered me. I devoted all of my time and energy into catching criminals. I dropped out of school and quit my job at the railroad just to focus on it. As a result, I lost all contact with people my age. I could honestly say I had no friends, let alone a girlfriend. It was something that really bothered me. I wouldn't change anything that I have done, but I do wish I was able to make some friends my age at least…

"Really? You don't?" The girl asked in surprise. "I'm shocked! I would have thought some girl would have swooped in for you! I know I would!"

…_really?_

The girl giggled as she watched my cheeks turn a brighter red. She then held out her hand. "My name's Rachel."

I smiled and ignored my blush as I shook her hand. "Booker."

"Pleasure to meet you!" Rachel stated with a laugh. She then moved her eyes toward the center of town. "Well, Booker, if you don't have a girlfriend to wait for, do you want to walk with me to the reaping?"

All I could do was nod dumbly as I followed her, trying my best to hide my blush that was getting redder by the second.

**Alexandra Varas's POV – District 6 Female**

The reaping ceremony was, in general, quite standard and generic. I stood alongside the other girls in the seventeen year-old section and pretended to listen to the mayor as he gave the same speech he did every year. After hearing it for the past seventeen years, I could give the 'Treaty of Treason' speech in near verbatim. There was no purpose in listening. Besides, the speech was entirely false and was just a political tool to make people in the districts think that the Hunger Games and the shitty lives we lived were our faults.

Naturally, no one believed it. We all knew how stupid this was. The Capitol was to blame for all of this. They were the reason for the shit living standards, the reason for the extremely high cost-of-living, and the reason for the Hunger Games. Twenty-three children died each year because of them: because of a damn revolt that occurred a hundred and fifty years ago that they won't let us forget.

No speech would be able to convince anyone that we deserved this life.

Once the mayor completed his speech, Lunar Brighton, our district escort walked forward. Of all the capitol escorts that District Six has had, I respected him the most. Sure he looked like a watermelon, both in shape and in-terms of the color of his hair and skin, but he realized that none of us wanted to be here. Therefore, he didn't try to drone out the reaping ceremony.

"I'll skip the standard speech and just move on to the reason we all are. Let's start with the girls." Lunar stated sharply.

_No beating around the bush whatsoever._ I liked that. Now, after he read the names, I could go back home and carry on with my life.

The man placed his hand into a bowl and grabbed the first paper he felt. He then unfolded it and proceeded to read off the name.

"Ms. Alexandra Varas!" He read.

_Shit!_

Surprise covered my face as I felt my eyes widen. My mind went blank a second and I started to walk towards the center stage on instinct alone. As the initial fear starts to fade away, my mind starts to wake up more. I start to think more about myself.

I've been risking my life nearly every day to survive and to help my family survive. The Hunger Games arena would be no different.

With that thought in my head, I casted away all of the traces of fear in my mind. A grin developed on my face as I walked on the stage. I was already reaped, so there was no reason to be nervous. Being nervous now would be impractical: it would make me look weak and it would lessen my overall chance of survival, and I was determined to survive! I had a family to provide for after all!

"Nice to meet you Ms. Alexandra. Or should I call you Alex?" Lunar questioned.

"No, I am Alexandra." I state firmly, but politely.

"Good to know." The man nods. He then looks to the second bowl of names. "And now, for the male tribute-"

"Hold it!"

**Booker Comston's POV – District 6 Male**

The eyes of the entire district were focused solely on me. I started to walk forward from my position amongst the eighteen year-old boys. I don't normally like being the center of this attention, but I can't help myself. I cannot let this injustice happen! _I won't!_

"You can't send her out to the Hunger Games! She's a criminal! She needs to be punished here!" I shouted.

A few gasps could be heard from amongst the people. I noticed Ms. Varas's eyes widen at the decree, before they hardened in anger as she glared at me.

She is the thief. _I knew it!_ And I'm not going to let her get sent into the Games to avoid her punishment!

At that moment, the peacekeepers that were stationed at the reaping ran over towards me. They then grabbed me and held me down, preventing me from moving. I cursed as I tried to pull them off of me.

"Let go of me dammit!" I hissed as I elbowed one in the face.

"Criminal? Young man, I have no idea what you are talking about!" Lunar exclaimed in confusion as he looked at me and the peacekeepers. "All I know is that you're wasting our time here! You peacekeepers keep doing what you're doing and get him out of here!"

"No, you can't send her off yet! She's a thief. She's been stealing from people here in the district. From peacekeepers to common citizens to even the mayor: this woman has robbed many people and endangered their very livelihood!" I shouted in anger.

At that moment, I could feel the grips of the peacekeepers lighten. They, along with the rest of the district, took that moment to stare at Ms. Varas with surprise in their eyes. Like a true criminal, she looked onward without any guilt. Her eyes focused on me as a scowl developed on her face. "You have no proof."

"I do too! I have evidence at my house that will convict you!" I shouted in defiance as I finally pulled the peacekeepers off of me. Immediately, they turned their attention back to me and held me down again.

"I'll repeat myself, you're wasting our time!" Lunar hissed at me. "…besides, she is going into the Hunger Games. If she really was the criminal you say she was, could that not be considered punishment enough?"

"No. Many good, unfortunate lives have been lost in the Hunger Games and she doesn't deserve to be added to that list. She needs to be punished and executed the proper way: like any criminal should be!" I answered back.

_It's true. _I've seen many good kids lose their lives in the Games. She is no good kid. She doesn't deserve to die a victim of the Games. She deserves to die the way all criminals should!

The Games were also not true punishment as well. She could win. If she can pull off three years worth of heists without being caught, then she clearly has skills that make her a threat in the Games. And if she did win…

I was not going to let that happen! I will not let her get away from her crimes unpunished!

"…if you are going to send her in the Games, then I volunteer!" I shouted loudly.

A collective gasp was heard from many people in the district. I could hear the gasps, even from the peacekeepers holding me down. As their grip weakened again, I shoved them off and ran over to the center stage.

"I will make sure you get punished the way a criminal like you deserves to be punished. You will not die nobly like previous tributes in the Hunger Games, I will make sure of that." I told Ms. Varas coldly.

"Too bad for you, I'm no thief. And I will not die!" She hissed at me, still denying my claim. "You really are stupid, you know that? You're going to risk your life in the Hunger Games just because you believe that I am a thief and you wish for me to get the 'proper punishment?'"

"I have ideals and I will not allow them to be compromised!" I replied firmly.

"Well, your ideals are flawed. I'd consider picking up a new set before you die in the arena!" She shouted back, her glare intensifying.

"Children…children…break it up. Break it up." Lunar commented with a slightly uneasy tone to his voice. "Um…District Six, here are your tributes for this year's Hunger Games!"

Perhaps this is a mistake. Perhaps I will die as a result of this decision. I had no interest in competing in the Hunger Games and killing common civilians. But I have my ideals and they mean everything to me! The day my mother and sister died, I made a pledge to myself that I would do my part to punish all criminals and create a world of peace. I was not going to let even one crook escape their due fate! And if it meant me dying in the process, then so be it.

_I'll do everything in my power to make sure that you, Ms. Alexandra Varas, die by my hand…_

* * *

**District Seven**

**Winnie Goldstein's POV – District 7 Female**

I couldn't help but yawn as I woke up. I had a hard time sleeping last night. Considering that I lived on the streets, sleep was a very rare luxury. Last night, though, was a really hard night to sleep through.

Today was the reaping day. I had just turned twelve and I filled out a form signing up for plenty of tesserae. I realize that it was only my first year and mathematically speaking, I should still be here after today. Still, I couldn't help but feel nervous. I wasn't easily scared, but the thought of dying in the Hunger Games was not something I wanted…

"Morning Winnie! Sleep well?"

I turn my head and saw my twin brother, Marvin. He had a smile on his face so wide that I couldn't help but smile back.

"Morning Marv. I'm surprised you're awake. You usually sleep until noon!" I greeted him teasingly.

Marv yawned in response before replying. "That's assuming I get the chance to sleep! We don't really have a comfy bed right now, you know?"

I nodded, a frown on my face. I knew exactly what he meant. Living on the streets – being homeless hurt. I really missed a bed, being in shelter for the rain, and my parents…

Mother and Father were great parents, and two of the only adults that I actually trusted, but they were also very rebellious. They would often have meetings with other rebels and they were even planning on maybe rioting against the Capitol. As soon as they became more public about rebellion, they were quickly killed. Marv and I were only seven when we lost our parents. This left us alone with Daren, our evil older brother…

I would like to think that I am a logical person. I am at least much wiser compared to the other kids my age. I would not toss out a term like 'evil' out loosely. But Daren…that was the only word that accurately described him. He is exactly what I don't like about older people. He takes advantage of anyone underneath him – starting with kids like Marv and I. Daren was supposed to take care of us after our parents died, but we became nothing more than servants to him. He'd abuse us and have us do the chores that our parents did for him while he spent all of the money he had saved on alcohol and prostitutes. He'd even steal any money that we were able to raise to go to his excess purchases! We didn't even have much money in the first place, but with Daren draining our money like that, Marv and I could barely afford any food.

When we turned ten, we realized that Daren was going to one day get us killed, so we left. For the past two years, Marv and I have been living on the streets. We earned our money doing small errands for people and trading anything we could find. Life wasn't easy and, honestly, it was horrible. But we will do anything we can to survive, and if leaving the comforts of home could help us survive, then we would do just that.

"You alright Winnie?" Marv asked me. He waved his hand in my face, knocking me out of my train-of-thought and back to reality.

"Yeah. Sorry." I apologized with a shake of head. "I was just thinking about things."

"You spend too much time thinking." He answered with a teasing smile. "So, do we have an agenda for today?"

I nodded in response as I dug into the pockets of my shorts. I pulled out a few coins. "I saved this for today. We're going to have a small meal and try to enjoy today before the reaping. Then after the reaping, we'll just go back and do what we normally do. I think we could probably find a few errands to do for someone or something."

"Ah, okay." Marv nodded in agreement. He pulled out a few coins from his pocket and started to chuckle. "Funny, I tried to save up for today as well. Great minds think alike, huh?"

I giggled in response. "Yes, we do."

With that in mind, Marv and I proceeded to walk away from our little spot in our alley and walk down the street. We stopped walking when we saw another person, a boy, sleeping at the very end of the alley.

"Who is that?" Marv asked in confusion.

I stared at the person suspiciously. He was a tall guy, slightly skinny guy with brown curly hair that was styled like an afro. The guy looked at least seventeen years old and, judging from the dirty clothes he was wearing, he was also homeless. The boy was snoring rather loudly.

"I've never seen him before. Must be new to the streets." I commented.

Marv and I continued to stare at the strange, new boy for around a minute. Our staring stopped when the boy started to stretch and yawn.

"He's waking up." Marv whispered into my ear.

The two of us quickly hid behind the gutter in the alley, our eyes focused on the boy. It was odd to see another homeless person in the district. District Seven had very few, and there were very few close to us in age. I couldn't help but wonder what he was like…

**Raegae Oak's POV – District 7 Male**

I woke up feeling a sharp pain in my back. I got up and immediately started to stretch. Sleeping on the ground in an alley really did a lot of damage to back. One of these days I'm going to wake up with actual back problems. Maybe I should try and save up money and buy myself a mattress or something? Or maybe a blanket? Perhaps that could help?

Eh, that'd just be a waste of money. It's not like it was too much of a big deal.

There weren't too many people homeless in the district, but the few that were seemed to hate it. There was apparently some negative image attached to the idea and they just didn't want to be associated with it. I was one of the few homeless members of the district, but unlike the others, I actually enjoyed it. I governed my life – no one could tell me what to do. I was my own man and I had the freedom to do anything I wanted to do.

Sure, I missed a few of the luxuries of having a home, such as having a bed to sleep in, but I really didn't miss the home I used to have. In particular, I didn't miss my parents and I know that they didn't miss me. They were the ones who kicked me out in the first place after all! All I did was pull an innocent prank on the neighbor boy and they decided that I was 'the scum of the earth' and 'a disgraceful child' and then forced me to leave.

I mean, so what if my prank almost killed the kid? He didn't die in the end and that's all that matters! But no, apparently I committed some damn war crime or something. My parents just can't appreciate some good, innocent humor. _Well, screw them! _

A scowl developed on my face. _First back pain and now thinking about my parents._ The day had just begun and I was already not in a good mood. I proceeded to start walking down the streets of the district, looking for something to do to put me in a better mood.

It didn't take me long to find something to do. I saw a little girl about twelve years old walking down the street in a really nice pink, frilly dress. Probably an outfit her parents got her for the reaping. An idea quickly entered my head and a devious smirk entered her head.

Kids usually liked to wear their nicest clothes to the reaping. It would be a shame if those 'nice' clothes got ruined somehow.

My eyes quickly scanned the area, looking something that could ruin her clothes. Luckily, I lived in district seven, so it didn't take long for me to find something. Since our district's main resource was lumber, trees covered almost the entire district. I noticed that one tree that the little girl was about to walk by had a small, yellow bee nest on one of the higher branches.

_Oh, that will definitely work!_

I bent over on to the street and picked up the first large rock I could find. I then started to walk behind the little girl. My eyes kept focusing back-and-forth between her and the bee nest in the tree. Finally, I stopped walking and raised my arm.

I chucked the rock as hard as I could at the bee nest. The rock struck the nest and actually moved it slightly. I frowned slightly, disappointed that I couldn't get the whole nest to come down. My frown quickly disappeared though. The bees quickly came out of their nest. They then flew downwards at the exact moment the little girl walked under the tree.

"AHH!"

The reaction was instantaneous and priceless. The little girl shrieked and ran away crying while the bees flew after her in a rage.

I laughed hard as I watched her run. That wasn't one of the most complex pranks I've done, but it was pretty damn satisfying. I happen to enjoy pulling off pranks on little kids the most. Their reactions are the most funny!

Damn, I really needed that laugh!

**Winnie Goldstein's POV – District 7 Female**

"What an awful thing to do! Who does that stuff?" Marv gasped as we watched the little girl run away from the bees.

I couldn't help but glare at the older boy in front of us. He was laughing loud like an obnoxious animal. He reminded me a little of Daren in that moment. I could already tell that he didn't care about the people around him. To him, everyone else was just a tool that he could use for his own amusement.

I really didn't like older kids, and this boy was the perfect example of why I didn't.

"…let's go. Let's get something to eat." I said firmly to Marv.

Marv nodded and the two of us walked away in the other direction away from the boy. I turned around one last time to look at him and I saw a little boy with similar curly brown hair around my age approach him. I had no clue who he was, but I had no doubt in my mind that he was going to become another target for that rude boy's 'humor'.

The two of us quickly made our way through alley ways and streets towards a stand in the marketplace of District Seven. It was marked with a sign that read 'Nature's Products' that was decorated with flowers collected from the lumberyard. Most stores and stands in the area closed for the day because of the reaping, but I knew this stand well! It needed money badly, so it would stay open any day!

Marv and I quickly walked up to the front of the stand. The woman who ran the stand, Sherri, smiled at the sight of us.

"Well, if it isn't you two! What are you little ones up to?" She asked sweetly.

"Just wanting to get something to eat. Do you have any good fruit?" I asked politely.

"Do I ever! Give me a second." Sherri responded happily as she looked through her produce for the best fruit.

I smiled as I watched her. Marv and I met Sherri a week after we moved out to the streets. She's the reason the two of us are even alive. She allowed us to purchase fruits and vegetables at a reduced rate that we could afford. Furthermore, she would often have us run delivery errands for her to make some extra cash. She was both the main source of our food and the main source of our money.

I don't like many older people – especially adults. Sherri, however, was a definite exception. She was our savior.

"Can we get some pineapple?" Marv asked.

"Of course, sweetie." Sherri responded with a laugh.

Shortly, Marv and I were presented with a small basket of fruit. It contained a large pineapple, two bananas, and a small container strawberries.

"That's a lot of fruit…" Marv mumbled in surprise.

I nodded in agreement. It was, honestly, too much. "…I don't know if we can afford that much! Can you take out the strawberries?"

"I didn't ask for money. You kids can just have it for free!" She replied.

…excuse me?

"No, that isn't fair at all. We have money!" I assured her, holding out my coins. Marv nodded in agreement as he held out his own coins.

"No, I know you two have money. But it's the reaping day. You two deserve a good meal together…" She said with a sad smile. "Today is a day where you need to appreciate every last second with the people you love. You two need to have a good meal and not have to worry about the cost."

"…are you sure this is okay?" I asked uneasily.

Marv actually developed tears in his eyes. "…th-thank you."

"Don't worry about it! Just make sure to come back tomorrow and get something!" She replied with a laugh.

"We will. Maybe even tonight!" I replied.

That woman really was a savior. If there was a god in this world, then Sherri had to be one of his angels.

Marv and I thanked Sherri extensively before walking off with the basket of fruit. For the first time in weeks, we were going to have a good, long, delicious meal!

**Raegae Oak's POV – District 7 Male**

"What you did to that girl wasn't funny at all Raegae!"

I blinked in surprise at the voice and turned around. There behind me was my little brother, Sycamore. He was a young, twelve year old boy about five feet in height and he had the same curly brown hair that I had.

Truth be told, Sycamore was probably the only person I actually enjoyed being around. I didn't really have any friends. In terms of my family, I hated my parents and my other sibling, my little sister Maple, was just a little brat that I enjoyed to torture whenever I saw her. Sycamore, on the other hand, was not like any of the other people I had met. He might not always like my pranks and jokes, but he at least didn't seem to judge me for them! He actually was a good kid who respected everyone and I respected that about it. I could never share his beliefs about other people, but I can't help but respect the fact that he has them.

"How are ya doing little bro? How'd ya find me?" I asked curiously. "I just moved to a different alley today!"

"You know you aren't that hard to find. All I have to do is wait for something to catch on fire or for somebody to start screaming. I then just head in the direction of the chaos." He replied with a shrug.

"Ha, good one." I laughed loudly.

Sycamore rolled his eyes. "Be careful Raegae! One of these days, you're going to prank somebody you shouldn't have and you'll get in trouble!"

"Ooh. Trouble. Who is going to do something to me?" I asked with raised eyebrows. "The peacekeepers? Please! They don't give a shit about anything. As long as I don't screw with them, they won't screw with me!"

"I…I don't know! Just…be careful with your pranks. I don't want someone else getting hurt…or you getting hurt for that matter!" He told me quietly.

"Well, your concern is appreciated, but I'll be fine." I answered with an eye roll. "…I hope you didn't come all the way out here to just give me a lecture! You got to have something else more important to do!"

"No…I didn't. Um…you know I'm twelve now right? It's my first reaping…" Sycamore looked downward as he spoke. "...I kinda wanted to see you at least one more time...in case...well..."

'_Oh.'_ Understanding crossed my face as I looked at my little brother. "You're nervous, aren't you?"

Sycamore gave no verbal reply. He just simply nodded his head. I saw a few tears develop in his eyes.

On pure instinct alone, I pulled him in for a hug. He quickly wrapped his arms around my stomach.

"Sycamore, I know for a fact that you don't need tesserae. Mom and Dad are well-off enough that you shouldn't. You only have one piece of paper with your name on it. I promise you: your name will not be called today." I assured him, tightening my hug.

"…what about you?" He asked softly.

For the briefest of moments, I hesitated. After my parents kicked me out, money had been extremely scarce. I can barely afford a single thing! Therefore, I did apply for tesserae. A lot of tesserae to be exact. As quick as those thoughts entered my head, I shook my head and rejected them.

"I'll be fine. Trust me. You all are still gonna be stuck with me for a few more years at least before I kick the bucket from malnutrition or something else. But not because some kid stabbed me in the Hunger Games!" I told him with a laugh.

A few minutes passed before my little brother let go. He then pulled himself away and brushed off the remaining tears in his eyes.

"I hope those tears weren't for me, you know? I don't want to see you crying over me!" I informed him.

"No…I wasn't crying about that." He shook his head. A playful smile then appeared on his lips. "…you just smell really bad. I couldn't help but cry a little."

I couldn't help but laugh boisterously in response to that comment.

"Hey, you try living on the streets. We'll see if you can still smell squeaky-clean after just one day!" I challenged.

The two of us laughed playfully. Okay, I will admit: if I had to say I missed something about my house I missed other than a bed, it would be just being able to chill with my little bro.

A few minutes passed before Sycamore decided that he needed to head back to our parents. He needed to get dressed for the reaping still.

"Try and avoid seeing me until after the reaping. You wouldn't want me to do something to your precious, clean suit, would you?" I teased him.

"Raegae!" He sighed in frustration.

After a small banter about my pranks, Sycamore headed back to his house, leaving me alone. I then started to look around the district for something to do.

"Hmm…I think I got at least another two hours before the reaping." I mumbled to myself as I looked for another potential target for an 'innocent prank'. "What is there to do to kill some time?"

**Winnie Goldstein's POV – District 7 Female**

After Marv and I finished our fruit breakfast, the two of us walked over to the center of the district and waited for the reaping to begin. We had nothing else to do, and honestly, we really didn't know what were really supposed to do. This was our first time being a part of the reaping after all!

It really feels weird that I'm twelve now. I'm growing up. Soon, I'll be an older kid, and then an adult. I'll be just like the people I don't trust. It's a weird feeling.

…I just hope that by the time I'm an adult, I'm a woman as kind and caring as Sherri!

Marv and I were forced apart, as the district kids were divided by both age and gender. We gave each other a hug before we sent off to stand in our sections.

Slowly but surely, the section I was standing in began to fill up. I was slowly surrounded by other twelve-year olds. All of them were dressed up in their best looking clothes. It made me, wearing nothing but the dirty clothes that I wore every day, stand out in a way that I did not want to.

The wait for the reaping was agonizingly slow. I spent most of time looking at Marv and making sure he was okay. It didn't take me much time to find him. He looked so out of place amongst the other boys our age! Nevertheless, he was able to find me from my spot. Once he realized I was looking at him, he gave me a wide smile. I gave him one back. Soon I turned my attention back to the center, hoping to get this out of the way…hoping that neither Marv nor I would get reaped.

The mayor of our district came up and delivered a speech about the 'Treaty of Treason' and the reason for the Hunger Games. I couldn't focus on it. The more he talked, the more anxious I got about the Games.

Soon, the mayor was replaced with Autumn Marine, our district escort. She was a bubbly woman with blonde hair that went down to her back. She looked pretty normal compared to Capitol standards, but that honestly didn't say much. The last guy who was our district escort had blue hair that went down to his feet.

I really wondered what exactly 'normal' was like in the Capitol.

"District Seven, hello! It's great to be here. Of all the districts, I have to say that this one is by far the most beautiful. Everything here, from the beautiful landscape to the cool breeze of the land to the people…oh I just love being back here in District Seven!" Autumn told us happily.

Autumn continued going on-and-on about our district and how amazing it is. For the first minutes, it sounded sweet and sincere. After about the sixth minute of the speech, however, it started to sound more-and-more fake. I was really starting to not like her.

She eventually ended her speech and walked over to the bowl with the names of the potential tributes.

"Well, I guess it is time to pick our tributes for this year's Quarter Quell. As usual, ladies first!" She said excitedly as she reached into the bowl.

She pulled out a small piece of paper. I couldn't help but bite my lip as I waited nervously to hear the name. She quickly unfolded it and called out the name written down on it.

"Winnie Goldstein!"

"No…" I gasped.

I closed my eyes and started to shake my head. I…was going into the Hunger Games. It was happening…it really was happening.

I was going to die.

"This…this isn't fair. This isn't fair at all!" I cried to myself under my breath.

A few seconds passed before I finally calmed my nerves down. The rational side of my brain took over and I started to walk uneasily up to the center of the stage. I had a feeling this could happen and it did. It wasn't surprising, with all the tesserae I applied for. There was a high chance of me getting reaped…just like there is a high chance of me dying.

"Sniff…"

I could hear a small sniffle and I turned around. I saw Marv crying in his corner in the section of twelve-year old boys. The expression on his face hurt me.

…_I can't die!_ Marv and I had been together our all whole lives! He can't live without me, as I couldn't live without him!

I know the chances of me winning are small…frankly, they might as well be nonexistent. But knowing that if I die I would be leaving my brother alone fueled me. I wasn't going to let them kill me! I was going to fight!

"Don't cry Marv!" I shouted loudly as I walked onto the stage with newfound determination. I heard the sniffling decrease in loudness, meaning he must have heard me. "I won't be gone for long! I'll be coming home!"

**Raegae Oak's POV – District 7 Male**

_Fat chance!_ I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the little girl's declaration.

The little brown-haired twelve-year old, Winnie, was extremely tiny. She was under five foot and she looked like she hadn't eaten in weeks! She looked so fragile that I could breathe on her and she would fall over in pain.

_She's screwed. _I'll be stunned if she lasts past the bloodbath.

"Aren't you the cutest thing ever! How are you doing sweetie?" She asked. "Who was that you were talking to darling?

The girl, Winnie, ignored Autumn's comment. She actually seemed to be trying her best to ignore the escort. I took the time to actually look at her face. She spent most of her time looking out into the crowds toward the other twelve-year olds. Probably at whoever this 'Marv' kid was. Other than that, though she had the same look that all kids her age have when they are reaped. She was scared out of her mind, but she was trying her best to hide it. Once she's alone, she'll probably take off that fake mask and start crying.

After a few more attempts to talk to her, Autumn eventually sighs in frustration and gives up. She then struts to the bowl with the next set of names. I couldn't help but drool a little as I watched her shake her hips. I'm not going to deny it: our district escort was hot. If I had the opportunity, I'd probably sleep with her.

…_I really needed to get laid soon! _

"Now, it's time for the male tribute!" She exclaims as she reaches in.

'_Good.'_ She'll pick a name, the two tributes will be sent off to their death, and then everyone can just go back to their own day. This was all a waste of time…

Autumn quickly pulled out the first paper she reached for and opened it.

"Raegae Oak!"

…_what? What? _

_WHAT?_

No…there's no way. I don't care how much tesserae I put in. There's no way! There are many kids who put in more tesserae than I did! And there are even more kids in this district in general! There's no way!

No damn way!

"What a bunch of bull!" I hissed loudly.

I stormed through the crowd of seventeen-year olds, knocking a few of them aside as I rushed forward. A scowl developed on my face and I could feel myself starting to see red. The closer I walked to the center, the angrier I got. By the time I reached the stage, I was overtly pissed.

"Um…" My anger seemed to scare Autumn, who decided to take this moment to speak to the crowds of people. "District Seven…your tributes for this year's Games!"

Winnie and I were forced to shake hands at that point, but I wasn't even paying attention to her. I was just focused on my own thoughts.

I didn't even have to look for my family to know that my parents were happy about this. I could tell that most of the district was as well. The homeless freak – the pranking troublemaker – was reaped. Better him than some other, innocent boy. Hell, I bet a few of them, maybe even Mom and Dad, were looking forward to watching me die!

Well, I wasn't going to let them have their satisfaction. I was going to win. I could feel the somewhat crazed grin develop on my face. _I'm going to walk away a victor. And I'll kill any poor unfortunate soul who tries to stop me!_

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hey everyone! :) Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter!

So...just kinda letting you all know how the story is going to work. Instead of doing twelve reapings (because believe me, that would take forever), I decided to split up the points-of-view and do it a little differently to progress the story at a decent rate. This was the only reapings chapter, telling the points-of-view of the District 6 and 7 tributes. Next chapter will be justice building visits, telling the points-of-view of the District 5 and 8 tributes. The chapter after that will be the train-ride, featuring the points-of-view of the tributes from District 4 and 9. And I think you get the picture by now!

This will progress the story at a fast rate without getting boring or monotonous. And don't worry, I can promise that all twenty-four tributes will each have two chapters full of points-of-view, as well as all will have a third point-of-view in the chapter right before the beginning of the Games. And whenever they don't have a point-of-view, they will still be relevant in the other tributes' point-of-views and will be seen developing.

Yeah...just explaining how this will all work. For the record, my Hunger Games story was inspired from the works of the author ToxicatedRose. If you like this story at all, then please, give his stories a try! I'm sure he would appreciate it!

So...what did you all think of the tributes in this chapter? Anyone you like? Anyone you didn't like? Let me know! I'd love to hear feedback on these four lovely tributes! Oh, and before anyone comments, yes the creators of Booker and Alexandra worked together on their tributes. They sent in their forms together! :) I'm really curious on your opinions of them, and the opinions on Raegae and Winnie!

That's all I really have to say. I hope you all like my writing and the way that this Games will be written. I will be working on the next chapter as soon as I can and will have it updated asap! I will see you guys then! :)


	4. The Visitors: Fear and Energy

**District 8**

**Xander Lugar's POV – District 8 Male**

Once the reaping ceremony ended, the peacekeepers escorted me and my district partner, Raven, into two separate rooms in the Justice Building. The room that I was in was very bland. It was a small, grey room with the only distinguishable features being a large mirror on the wall, a silver video camera in the corner of the room, and the brown door that I walked through.

I was more than glad to be in this room, away from everyone and everything. Today had been hell and I was glad to just be by myself. In general, I considered myself an introvert and did not enjoy having too much attention on me. At the reaping ceremony, Destiny, District Eight's escort, had picked one of the many pieces of paper that had my name on it. The entire district was staring at me, trying to size up my chances of survival in the Games. All of that attention alone was enough to make me uncomfortable, but I also had to face the realization that I was going to die in the Hunger Games.

My eyes wandered to the mirror in the room and focused on my clothes. My family – or what is left of my family I should say – couldn't afford any nice clothes for me, so I wore my grandfather's clothes when he was my age. He was a lot taller and skinnier than me though when he was my age, so the white shirt, the matching white pants, and the brown shoes I was wearing were both too long and too tight on me. These clothes were also covered in my vomit.

Tears started to fil my eyes as I looked at the vomit stains. I…I couldn't stop myself. I was so uncomfortable and scared during the whole reaping ceremony that, after I looked out into the crowds of people from the district, I threw up on the stage. Destiny shrieked in disgust at the sight and the rest of the district, even my own partner, looked at me with some variation of pity. Everyone knew what was going to happen: I was going to die.

In that moment, I effectively ruined any chance I had at making any sponsors. To anyone watching, I was just the slightly chubby, weak thirteen year-old boy who vomited on stage. Maybe some people would feel bad for me, but they all were going to assume that I was going to die in the bloodbath.

"It's not fair…it's not fair!" I cried to myself. "…damn the Capitol!"

I couldn't take it anymore. I couldn't look at my tear-filled, pathetic face. It was pissing me off! I took off one of my shoes and tossed it at the mirror. Upon impact, the mirror shattered and shards of glass scattered on the ground. I then rushed over to my shoe, put it back on my foot, and proceeded to jump on the shards of glass, shattering them further.

In the back of my head, I knew that I wasn't acting rationally. There was definitely a chance that I could get in trouble for destroying public property that belonged to the Capitol. I just didn't care. What was anyone going to do to me? I was also reaped for the Hunger Games. They can't do anything to me until the Games! Even assuming they could do something to me, I was already slated to die – what more could they honestly do to me? Kill me sooner? I would probably prefer that! It wouldn't prolong my life and would simply put me out of misery.

A few minutes after I had completely crushed all glass shards, I had started to calm down. Immediately after, the door to the room slammed open. A peacekeeper stormed in and glared at me.

"Listen here, you brat. Do you know what you just did? That mirror is worth more than anything you could ever hope to pay for!" He hissed at me.

I laughed un-humorously in response. "I've already paid my life. Consider that my payment!"

"Your life isn't worth shit, you snot-nosed kid!" He retaliated with a scowl.

"Go to hell!" I shouted back at him.

The peacekeeper snarled back, calling me multiple obscenities. I just rolled my eyes, ignoring him. He honestly could not do anything to me. The Capitol would have his head if something happened to one of the reaped tributes.

This wasn't the first time I was 'told off' for something I said or did. I was told I had anger-management issues, so verbal fights were quite common for me. Ever since my parents died in a house-fire when I was six, I became a much more irritable person. I had a tendency to not accept people's bullshit, no matter who they were. I didn't care if they were older than me, tougher-looking than me, or even if they had political authority over me – if you made me mad, I was going to let you know that!

A few minutes passed before the peacekeeper decided to quit our verbal argument. He glared at me before he stormed out of the room, slamming the door. For the briefest of moments, I was left alone. A minute passed before the door opened again.

Instead of another peacekeeper, I was greeted by my actual visitors: my grandfather and my older sister, Amaya.

Amaya rushed forward and grabbed me by my shirt. She then pulled me into a hug and sobbed into my shoulder. I immediately returned her hug and started to cry as well.

"Xander…are…are you okay?" My grandfather asked quietly as he walked towards us slowly. He was a rather old man that was in his seventies, a very rare feat for someone living in the districts! His age, though, made him rather slow and frail. To be honest, I was surprised he had the energy to come all the way to the Justice Building and visit me.

"Grandpa…honestly…no." I answered, my voice weak.

"Why…why did this happen? Why now?" Amaya questioned amidst her tears, her head still on my shoulder. "Things were just starting to look up for us…"

This really was a bad time. My sister and I had just stopped mourning for our parents and were finally able to fully function again. We had also just gotten new jobs at a textile factory that paid more than our previous jobs. For the past month, we were able to work more for more money and my grandfather was slowly getting the chance to work less and rest more at our small house. Until today, I would have said life was starting to be easier! But now…

"Amaya…Grandpa…please, just look after each other. Promise me that you'll keep doing what you are doing. And don't look…when…well…" I shook my head. "…just try not to be watching when I die…"

"…no." Amaya stated firmly. She pulled herself away from me and proceeded to glare at me with her tear-filled eyes. "Don't talk like that. Don't you EVER talk about that to me! You are not going to die Xander!"

"Don't try and deny it sis. I embarrassed the crap out of myself today and I'm not going to get any sponsors…" I replied quietly, looking downward. "…besides, my district partner looks much stronger than me…and that's not even counting the other tributes."

Raven, the girl that was reaped with me, didn't look much older than me but she definitely had a much better chance than me. She was a pale-skinned, slightly-thin girl with blonde hair that actually had a little muscle in her. She was also very pretty and was able to smile and wave at the cameras after she was reaped. Raven already had a much stronger chance than I did to come out of the Hunger Games…and that was just one tribute. I'm pretty sure at least twenty of the other tributes had a stronger chance than me to win as well!

"I don't care what the other tributes are like and how many sponsors you have! You can still win this dammit!" Amaya shouted at me. "You're smart, and you know it!"

"Probably not as smart as the tributes from District Three or Five…" I mumbled in response.

"Xander, just stop…please…" My grandfather spoke up. He put his arm on my shoulder and stared at me intently. "I've seen you in your room. You know how to work with gadgets and gizmos. And you have more common sense than most kids your age. You can do it…you just need to believe in yourself."

"Believe…in myself?" I repeated his words.

"You're smarter than you think! And you can definitely learn a few things when you get to the training area. Learn a weapon; learn how to survive in the wild: it shouldn't take you nearly as long as most people!" Amaya stated. "Please…I don't care how unlikely of a chance you think you have…just please try and do your best. I believe you can do it…and…and…" She stopped her speech as more tears started to develop in her eyes. "…we've lost enough family already. I don't think I can live if I lose you too…"

"Amaya…" I repeated her name.

_She's right._ Although I didn't think I had as much of a chance as she and our grandfather thought I had, I did realize that I can't lose! Our family really has been through too much. Seven years ago, Amaya and I lost our parents and grandfather lost his son and daughter-in-law. Just a year ago, our grandmother passed away from disease. We've been through a lot these past few years, but we've been tough. We've been able to survive so far, and it was because well all had each other!

I wasn't going to let either Amaya or grandfather go through any more pain. I just wasn't!

"…I'll…I'll do my best!" I told them with a smile as I rubbed any remaining tears out of my own eyes.

At that moment, a peacekeeper opened the door. It was the same guy who had yelled at me earlier before my family had came in.

"Hey little shit, your visiting time is over. Say goodbye to big sis and the old man, because you aren't seeing them again!" He taunted me as he walked forward towards them.

"Once again, go to hell!" I hissed at him before turning back to my family. "You guys take care. I'll do my best."

"You can do it Xander…I believe in you!" Amaya told me as she rubbed the tears out of her own eyes.

"Xander…take this into the arena. Look at it when you need strength, and know that me and Amaya are back home rooting for you." My grandfather stated as he took off a watch on his right hand and gave it to me.

Right as I accepted it from him, the peacekeeper grabbed my grandfather by the back of his clothes. He then roughly dragged him out of the room.

"He can walk himself! Let him go!" I shouted at him.

The peacekeeper made no verbal response: he simply extended his middle finger towards me. He continued to drag my grandfather out of the room. Once he was removed from the room, he grabbed Amaya by her hand and dragged her out as well.

"Xander, do your best! You can do it!" She shouted before she was pulled out of the room and the door was shut.

With my family gone, I was left alone. No more visitors came to see me off. I really didn't have many friends. I had a few people that I guess I could consider acquaintances, but I didn't have anyone else who would come to see me off. And, at this moment, I preferred it that way.

With nothing left to do, I put on my grandfather's watch on my right hand. It was rather simplistic: just a small, plain black watch made of some cheap leather. There was no aesthetic reason to have it: it simply just told time. I didn't care though. I looked at it fondly, not really caring about the time.

My family may have been removed from the room, but they were going to be with me. Grandfather and Amaya were going to be my side as I entered the Games.

Did I honestly think I have a chance? I…I didn't know. I really didn't. Amaya and grandfather were overestimating my intelligence. I was not as smart as they think I was. But I had did have some intelligence I think! And I had the will to live!

I was not going to let Amaya and grandfather watch another person die. I was just not! I would do everything I could to make sure that I walked out of the arena alive. I didn't know how I was going to do it, but I was!

With this determination in my mind, I spent the rest of the time in the Justice Building thinking about my strategy for the arena and what I was going to have to try and learn during the training…

**Raven Bell's POV – District 8 Female**

I walked back-and-forth in the room in the Justice Building. I was the kind of girl that did not like to be sitting still for too long. Right now, there was nothing else I could do but just pace, think, and panic about the Games.

Perhaps it was rather naïve of me, but I had assumed that I stood no chance of getting reaped. I was only thirteen years-old and my family was well-off. My father was a peacekeeper, so money was never an issue for me. With only two slips of paper in the bowl of girl names, I had never expected to get reaped, so I never worried about the Games. Now, knowing that I was going into the Hunger Games, I was freaking out and trying my hardest to stay calm.

A few minutes of solitude passed before the door to the room was opened. My father, mother, and older brother, Aiden, came rushing in. Mother was the first to reach me and she pulled me into a hug. She already had tears in her eyes, but the second she grabbed me, she started to sob hysterically.

"Raven, my baby! My sweet, sweet baby…" She continued to cry as she held on to me tightly.

"…Mom…please don't cry." I requested as tears developed in my eyes. "…I'm trying my hardest to not cry as well."

"This…this just isn't fair. Why did this happen to you? I don't understand it!" She exclaimed frantically. She somehow tightened her grip on me and it was starting to get hard to breathe.

"Leigh, please…you're going to crush her. Let the girl breathe." Father spoke up.

Mother let go of me reluctantly. She tried to rub off the tears in her eyes, but she continued to cry. My mother was a sweet, sweet woman who worked hard to improve the lives of everyone around her. She was such a happy woman and I had never seen her this upset before…and I wish I hadn't. The sight was enough to break my heart!

Father walked forward and put his hands on my shoulders. He looked me dead in the eye and I noticed that his eyes were red, as if he was trying his hardest not to cry.

"Raven…pay attention to the other tributes. Study them well. Learn what makes them tic and take them down." He told me.

"Dad…" My eyes widened. I was still just accepting the fact that I was going into the arena. I didn't want to even imagine having to kill someone.

"Once you get to the Capitol, you need to learn a weapon. Pick something small, like throwing knives or a slingshot or something. You're quick on your feet, so you shouldn't have something dragging you down." He continued.

"…do you honestly think I stand a chance Dad? I can't kill anybody…" I stated with tears in my eyes.

"…I do. Raven…this isn't anything I wanted to have to talk to you about. I had hoped this would never happen to you or your brother. But I know you can win. You're strong. You're tough. You've been doing dance for years now, so you're quick on your feet. I know you can win if you fight. So please…Raven…fight." Father begged.

_That did it._ I couldn't hold back the tears in my eyes any longer. I quickly put my hands over my eyes and nodded. "I'll…I'll try…"

"…Dad's right. You can do it Raven." Aiden told me as he approached me. He moved my hands away from my eyes and brushed away my tears.

I never really was too close with my brother. He was a cool guy at times, but he was also kinda a jerk. Like most guys honestly. I always thought of him as an annoying, stupid older brother. Right now, though, I looked up to him, probably looking at him for the last time. I saw the guy who had been there my whole life who had helped take care me, the guy who would walk me home from my dance lessons, the guy who would do anything for me.

"…Raven, don't cry. Don't cry." He told me, as tears started to fall down his eyes. "…otherwise, I'll start crying."

"…kinda too late for that now." I replied with a small smile, attempting to make a joke.

My brother returned the smile, but it was small and insincere. He quickly went to his left hand and took off his watch: a nice, gold watch that my father bought him for his fourteenth birthday. It was something of his that I had always wanted and I remember getting really angry that he was given it and not me.

"…do you still want this Raven?" He asked me in a soft voice.

"Aiden, no. That's your special watch! That was a gift: I can't take it!" I told him, shaking my head sharply.

My brother shook his head. He grabbed my left hand and put the watch on it.

"Consider it a gift from me to you. Know that your big bro will always be by your side in the arena." He told me.

I couldn't response to that. I just simply started to cry harder and pulled him into a longer hug.

The rest of my time with my family was spent with me, my mother, and Aiden crying while my father watched solemnly, as if he was trying to find some way to help. The other peacekeepers came and escorted my family out, leaving me alone for a few moments. The door quickly opened again, however, and I was greeted as my best friends, Carolina, Gracie, and Rose, came rushing in.

Rose took a look at my face and makes an uneasy smile. "Raven…you look like shit…"

It was a joke. Rose was a very direct and blunt person that often made jokes based on those traits. Normally, I would have laughed and probably responded back with a comment, something probably like 'At least I'm not shit like you', but I couldn't muster up the words.

Instead I nodded in agreement. "I feel like shit."

The uneasy smile dropped from her face and a frown covered her face. Gracie immediately burst into loud tears.

"This…this isn't fair Raven! What about all of our plans?" She cried out with red eyes.

Gracie, Carolina and I had all taken dance lessons. It's actually where I met Gracie! We were all really young and we had big dreams of becoming famous. We had often planned on opening a school and doing a recital so big that we got the attention of all of Panem. Our dances and shows were going to be revolutionary. Now, though…

"Well, you two can go on ahead. Rose, can you take my place in the dance?" I ask. "…it really did need three people."

"…Raven…I don't think so. You know I'm not much of a dancer like you three are…" Rose made another attempt at a joke, but she frowned when no one laughed back. "…I will if you want me to. But please…you can come back. You know you can! You need to fight!"

"…I'll try." I replied back.

"You know you can too. I already know you got plenty of sponsors. I mean, you're drop-dead gorgeous. All the boys our age want you and you know it!" She continued.

That comment actually made me laugh a little. Oh boys…I always told myself I was too young to date anyone, but that didn't mean I was too young to flirt. It was a talent that came naturally and one I enjoyed probably more than I should.

"You can do it Raven! You just need to do it…" Rose assured me.

Once the peacekeepers came into the room, Rose and Gracie left the room and waved me goodbye. As they walked out, Carolina, who had been quiet the whole time, walked up to me and gave me a hug.

"…I'm going to miss my best friend if you can't come out. Win for us Raven!" She whispered into my ear before she broke the hug and left.

Carolina and I had been best friends for the entirety of our lives. We both complimented each other so well. I was the outgoing, loud one who helped her open up more to the world and she was the shy, quiet one that helped keep me grounded. She was my rock, and I was hers. And I would do everything I could to come back to her, my other friends, and my family!

For a few minutes, I was left alone. I didn't really think anyone else would come visit me. I simply continued my pacing as my thoughts started to wander about the Games.

…_I wonder how many people came to visit my district partner._ Xander was a brown-haired, slightly chubby boy that I hadn't met, but I could hear the sounds of an older girl crying when his name was called. He obviously had some family and friends out there and I felt bad that he, too, was also in this situation. And I couldn't help but feel even worse for him when he threw up on the stage. Destiny, our escort, freaked out and made a big deal about it. She called him disgusting several times before she finally walked off stage immediately after.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the thought of that. It was completely understandable. The entire time I walked up the stage, I felt like I had a knot in my stomach. I honestly that that was going to throw up as well. I'm surprised I was able to hold it in. I don't fault him for doing it. I just felt sad that he was put in the situation…sad that we are both put into the same situation…

My thoughts on my district partner were interrupted as the door opened up a third time. A boy walked in: someone who I had never expected to show up.

"Jason? What are you doing here?" I gasped.

Jason was the son of my dance instructor and he was my age. He was a super sweet boy that I thought may have had a crush on me. He wasn't the most subtle person! I told him a week ago that I wasn't interested in a relationship, so I thought that he was upset with me. All the other guys that I said similar things to did not show up today after all! But, here he is…

"…I came to see you off Raven." He told me with a frown on his face. "…how are you doing?"

"…honestly, I've been better. But I'm feeling better than I did earlier." I answered with a sigh.

I just hated this. These last meetings with my family, my friends, and even with Jason…nothing felt natural! I wasn't the friendly, outgoing, sarcastic girl that I thought I was! I was so mopey and depressed! It was like I wasn't me right now. I couldn't forget for even a second that I was going into the Games and I hated it!

Tears developed into my eyes and Jason quickly rushed over to me and wrapped his arms around my back. I quickly did the same and buried my head into his chest.

We stayed like this for the rest of his visit until the peacekeepers came into the room. He broke his hug and looked me in the eyes.

"You're the best girl I have ever met…if you try, no one stands a chance against you." He said softly as his eyes turned red. "…good luck out there Raven."

I let a smile grace my lips as I rubbed the tears out of my eyes. _He believes in me that much? _I never really considered him that great of a friend: he was just a sweet boy I knew in passing. To hear him have that much support for me…

I gave him a small kiss on the cheek.

"I'll do my best. I promise." I tell him sincerely. "Please, take care Jason."

Jason smiles back. He waves goodbye to me as he walks out of the room before the peacekeepers force him out.

…_no more pity party!_ I spent too much time whining about what was going to happen in the Games and let it overshadow who I was. My family was right. Carolina, Gracie, and Rose were right. Jason was right. I could win. I really could!

The idea of killing someone made me uncomfortable, but I'd have to get over it. I was going to come to everyone. I had many plans to do and many people to come back to. Nothing, not even the Hunger Games, was going to stop that!

* * *

**District 5**

**Stephanie Volk's POV – District 5 Female**

I had never been inside the Justice Building, despite the fact that the mayor of District Five was my father. Unless you had business there, you were not allowed inside. No exceptions. Seeing the inside of the building was exciting to me. Although I was quickly shoved into my room, I still saw things that enthralled me.

The ceiling of the rooms, including the room that I was to wait inside, were all painted silver and had clear, see-through ceilings. I could see the electricity that powered the whole building running through the different visible currents in the ceiling. It was all so fascinating to me! When the peacekeepers left me alone in my room, the only thing I could do was stare at the ceiling and the electricity running through it.

In the back of my head, I realized that I was probably only interested in the ceiling so I could focus on something other than the reaping. I was, indeed, very nervous about the Hunger Games. Girls – small, nerdy girls like me – were reaped all the time from our district and very few came back alive. This thought remained in the back of my head, but I did my best to ignore it and focus on the electrical phenomenon that I was observing. I was not the kind of person who enjoyed focusing on the negatives in life, no matter how short my life was most likely going to be. If I could find one thing, even if it was just some electricity that intrigued me, I would spend my time focusing on that!

My study did not last for too long, as the door to the room opened up. Father and mother walked in with tears visible in their eyes.

"Stephanie…" My mother started. Her eyes wandered between me and the floor.

Father did not say anything. He simply looked downward, letting his tears hit the floor. I frowned in response as I adjusted my glasses. I didn't want my parents to be upset about me entering the Games. I didn't like seeing anyone depressed, especially not my family!

"…why are you two crying? I haven't died yet. I can still win." I reply quietly with a small smile.

That comment caused both of my parents to stop crying. I sighed in relief. Father looked up at me and his tear-filled eyes glistened with pride.

"Stephanie, your mother and I are so proud of the woman you have become. You're the brightest girl District Five has ever had…" Father spoke up quietly. "…you can win."

"Will win." I reassured. I could see the edges of my parents' mouths lift slightly.

Was I really this confident? No. Definitely not. I was terrified for the Games. I was terrified about an inevitable death in the bloodbath. But for them, I'll be the most confident woman they have ever met! As long as they left not feeling depressed, I would be whoever they wanted me to be!

"There are many victors from our district and District Three that have won through shear ingenuity alone. My best friend is one of them! And you will join that list of victors. I know you will!" My father exclaimed. He was growing more and more confident due to my attempts to cheer him up.

"Your father is right, dear." Mother spoke up in her quiet voice. She, like my father, was becoming more confident in me. "You can easily outwit all of the other tributes."

It was always possible. For every ruthless career that won the Games through brute force, there was always those few tributes that won through alternate methods. Maybe they used electrocution, explosions, machinery, traps, or whatever they could build. They won through outwitting the competition. I would definitely be playing with this mindset in mind. Technology of any sorts would be my weapon! The only question is if I really would win like I am telling my parents that I would…

As I thought more about the Games, a thought occurred to me that I needed to ask my father about.

"Dad, can you tell me about my partner?" I asked politely.

My father immediately stiffened. "…what do you want to know about him?"

"He obviously was familiar to you and the other people in the district based on that whole debacle a while back. I'm curious if you know anything about him." I answered.

My district partner, Icarus Bolt, was a volunteer. Those were rare for District Five standards, but volunteers like him were even rarer. He was not a muscular boy, but rather a wiry, lanky boy with unkempt black hair. He also had a few visible scars on his chest in areas where his red dress-shirt didn't cover. The fact that he volunteered was interesting to me alone, but there was more that I was curious about.

When he volunteered, Icarus made claims that he had attempted to escape the district. He didn't elaborate much. The only reason that I was concerned was that I noticed the eyes of all the surrounding peacekeepers, and even the eyes of my father, widen in surprise and disgust.

"…that boy is a crook. And from the way he volunteered and confessed to his crime, he's suicidal. I don't think he is much competition." My father dismissed.

"But father-"

My questions were halted as a peacekeeper entered the room.

"Sorry Mayor Volk, but I can't make exceptions for you. It's time to head out." The peacekeeper informed my father.

Father nodded before he turned towards me. "Forget about him. Focus on the other tributes. Focus on building something spectacular that will bring you home. Good luck Stephanie!"

"We are here for you when you get back." My mother stated with a smile on her face.

I gave each of them a kiss and a hug goodbye as I watched them leave. They left calmer than they had arrived, much to my relief.

I didn't have to wait much longer before the door opened up again. This time, my older brother walked in.

"Orion…" I looked at him intently.

Orion was a very stoic person. He masked his emotions well, no matter the circumstance. Today, however, was different. He came into the room with a nervous look on his face.

"Stephanie…" He mumbled my name quietly before speaking. "…I'm sorry…"

"…for what?" I asked with a slight laugh. "You didn't ask for me to get reaped, did you?"

"No…never. But I always told myself that I would be able to protect you from anything…and I failed that. I couldn't stop them from taking you away to here. And I'm sorry…" My brother continued to apologize.

I couldn't stop my frown from developing. Orion had always looked after me. I was always the little, quiet nerd that was picked on. Older kids would always harass me for being some sort-of freak to them. Whenever things would get bad, though, my big brother would come in like a knight in shining armor and send them away. No matter what was going on, he was always looking after me. He always protected me.

Tears started to fall down my eyes as I thought about all the things my brother did for me. When I became older, I wanted to do something for him. Maybe earn enough money and pay him back. I wanted to do something for him…to thank him for all the times he picked up when the bullies knocked me down, for when he bought me lunch when I had my lunch money stolen, for helping me clean up my messes whenever a lab experiment went wrong…

I had so many things I wanted to do, but I now had too little time to do any of it…

My brother and I hugged, and I finally let out all the tears I had been holding back since this nightmare began.

We stayed like this for nearly a full minute before I let ago and rubbed my eyes beneath my glasses. I then took off my glasses and proceeded to wipe off the tears on them.

"…one of these days, I need to work on designing a pair of glasses that cannot get wet." I mumble as a joke.

"You can work on it. Perhaps I can help you with the blueprint designs?" Orion suggested with a small smile.

"Sure…" I nod. Mentally, I added the last part of my sentence: _if I get back._

Orion nodded before he started to speak again. "…Stephanie, I know you. I've known you now for sixteen years. I've seen you work in the laboratories and facilities here all throughout District Five. No matter what you say, you are a genius. More than anything, I know how fast you can learn. Spend your training days wisely, and I know you will have a realistic chance to win."

"…that's what I told Mom and Dad earlier ago. But I really don't know Orion. I just…" I sighed, shaking my head.

"In the Capitol, in the cornucopia, there will be plenty of items that you can work with: some of which are things you could never hope to find here in the district. Imagine all the possibilities you could make with a few wires, let alone a bunch of Capitol equipment." My brother informed me.

The mention of Capitol equipment lifted my mood up slightly. One of my biggest dreams was to get access to the equipment that the Capitol possessed. I had long fantasized about all the different creations I could make: from power plants, to elemental weapons of fire and electricity, to full-body robot suits, to explosions! There were just endless possibilities with the amount of resources they possessed and I had always wanted to have access to even a portion of them! Even if I wasn't going to last much longer than a few weeks, I could stop fantasizing and start practicing.

"…you know, it would be cool to design a giant robot suit for the Hunger Games." I admitted with a chuckle.

Orion chuckled as well. "And I believe you are the kind of person who could actually feasibly build one."

…_maybe I could._ I already had hypothetical blueprints mapped out for most of my fantasy ideas. If I could just find the right equipment, I think I could make anything!

All of the possibilities…

"…heh, maybe going into the Hunger Games won't be such a bad thing after all." I stated with a grin.

My brother smiled at me, seemingly relieved that I was in better spirits.

The peacekeepers came in and soon escorted my brother out. I was then left alone. I was not a very outgoing person, so I did not have too many friends that could've showed up. There was a friendly a friend, a man named Atticus Deltro, that I thought would possibly show up, but he never did. Atticus was a former victor and, I believe, this building brought back bad memories from his experiences in the Hunger Games twenty years ago. The idea of not seeing him saddened me, as he is the man who inspired my love for science, technology, and knowledge in general. He was the one who encouraged it and helped it grow and in general played a major role in helping me become who I was today…

…_wait._ Atticus was a former victor. I wonder if he might be mentoring this year…

A smile graced my lips. There weren't many living male victors from our district. My friend, Atticus, would most likely be mentoring. If he was, I could run-through all of my ideas and plans for the Games with him. With his help and access to the Capitol resources, I could actually do it. I was no longer trying to convince my parents or my brother of my possible-success in the Games: I convinced myself.

**Icarus Bolt's POV – District 5 Male**

I couldn't help but cringe as I noticed the electricity running through the ceiling of the Justice Building rooms. It was probably the single thing on this planet I knew the most about, but it was also one of the few things I was legitimately afraid of. It was ironic, considering that I was born in the district that specialized in producing energy in power plants. I noticed even more irony when I thought about my father, who was an electrician who had spent years teaching me everything he knew about the art. Electricity was supposed to be what my life was based around, but after everything that I did to me, after all the harm it caused to my life, I don't know if I could ever really look at it in a positive light.

Being in a room alone with nothing to look at but electricity currents disturbed me. I walked back-and-forth, trying to ignore its presence.

A few minutes had passed before my first visitor walked into the room. My father, a man named Daelus, came into the room with a nervous look on his face.

"Icarus…" My father spoke up as he walked closer to me after entering the room.

Instinctively, I inched back away from him. "What do you want father?"

He stopped walking forward and looked at me with a hurt expression on his face. A year ago, I would have been devastated to know that I caused my father to feel such emotions. Nowadays, though, I didn't really care. He could be upset for all I care.

The man was partially responsible for me being in this room. Not entirely responsible, as I did volunteer, and therefore, I made the conscious decision to enter the Hunger Games. However, my father was indeed the source of my reason to volunteer.

"I…um…Icarus…thank you…" He mumbled nervously.

My eyes widened in surprise, and his eyes tightened in embarrassment. "…thank you? You're thanking me? For what?"

"…for taking the blame…I am…" My father continued to speak nervously. The man was starting to sweat more profusely. I wasn't very interested in psychology and reading people, but I would assume he was feeling some variant of guilt. "…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry Icarus!"

I couldn't stop myself from rolling my eyes. _As he should be!_ I don't really believe I could forgive him for everything he did to my cousin, Tallie…

Up until a year ago, I had an overinflated opinion of my father. He was the best electrician to exist in District Five and a great father. He had raised both me and Tallie alone after my mother and her mother died in a riot years ago. However, our family was never liked. I never really understood why. From what I observed, most of the district seemed to be jealous of my father's successes. As a result, my family was exposed to constant resentment from the people around us. This resentment deeply disturbed my father. When I turned sixteen, my father decided that we had suffered enough in the district and decided that we needed to escape: we were going to flee for District Thirteen.

Rumors existed about District Thirteen. The rumors were at their strongest at the time of the Third Quarter Quell, when people assumed that District Thirteen was about to rise from the ashes and lead a rebellion against the Capitol. This rebellion never happened and, thus, the rumors died. My father, for some reason, still believed in them.

We had reached the electric fence surrounding the district, ready to escape, when my father started to get nervous. He was supposed to shut down the electricity under the guise of doing a routine check, but he chickened out at the sight of the first peacekeeper. He tried to let me know that the plan was called off, but I didn't realize that meant that he failed to shut down the electricity. Therefore, I tried to maneuver myself through the electric fence and received a near-fatal shock of electricity throughout my body.

The electric shock…that was my fault. I take full responsibility for it. I should have inferred from my father that he hadn't shut the electricity off. I was just being a stubborn, reckless idiot and paid the price for it. It forced my father and Tallie to have to spend the next few months nursing me back to health in hiding.

It was at this point when my opinion of my father started to fade. During this time, my father started to focus solely on me and started to ignore my cousin Tallie entirely. He would neglect her, deprive her of food so he could give me more food, and sometimes force her to work more needless, long hours at her job so he could spend more time 'taking care of me'. His actions were abusive, but no matter how much I told him of that or how many times I assured him I was fine, he didn't listen. Even after I was fully healed and out of bed, he spent all of his time and focus on me and he wouldn't do a damn thing for my cousin.

Maybe he was a good father to me. Maybe he took care of me. But after all of the things he did to my little cousin, I cannot have any respect for that man…

"Icarus…are you there?" My father spoke up, getting my attention.

I snapped out of my thoughts and focused on my father in the room. I returned his question with a glare. "Of course I'm here. An apology is appreciated, but you should really be apologizing to Tallie."

"…Tallie…" My father repeated the name with a frown on his face. "…I owe her one too…but I owe you a bigger one. You're here because of me after all…"

"I'm here because of choices: both mine and yours. We are both at fault for this father." I answered coldly.

The aborted-attempt at fleeing the district did not go unnoticed by the peacekeepers. They had been doing constant investigation since the incident and, just a few days ago, had started to discover more clues into the identity of the culprit: me. They had found a blackened pin that resembled a pair of melted wings. It had belonged to me before the incident and, after a few more days of investigation, would have been properly traced back to me.

When I had informed my father about the information I had learned, he told me that he was going to pin the blame on Tallie if the peacekeepers ever questioned him. That was the point where the man lost all of my previous respect. I was not going to let my little cousin suffer more due to the poor decisions of this foolish man! In a rage, I demanded him to admit to being responsible for the escape attempt or else I would volunteer for the Games. My father, ever the coward, could not possibly admit to the decision. Therefore, I decided to volunteer and take the blame for everything.

"Icarus…I've been a terrible father. A terrible person, both to you and Tallie. I realize that…I tried so hard to do everything right, but I couldn't…I'm sorry…" Father apologized to me, openly sobbing. "…I didn't mean for you to go into the Games…p-please…come back!"

"You know that's unlikely, right? I have a one out of twenty-four shot. Not the best odds if you ask me." I responded sarcastically.

"B-But your odds are much higher. I've taught you everything I know about electricity. I'm…I'm certain you could electrocute any tribute with just a few supplies. I know you could!" My father declared frantically.

"…true." I shrugged. My volunteer entrance to the Hunger Games was not suicidal: I was planning on winning. And if I wanted to win, I realized that electricity was probably going to be my central weapon in the Games.

"You can use it, yeah! You could make great traps…I know you can Icarus…everything I taught you…it can get you out of the Games alive…" My father commented with a slight, humorless laugh. "Heh…maybe that…teaching you something you can use in the arena…maybe that's the one right thing I did when raising you."

The peacekeepers came into escort my father out of the room. I did not give the man another glance as he was dragged out. I didn't want to.

Being around my father hurt. Seeing the man who I had previously had so much respect for hurt knowing how much damage he did to Tallie. I don't think anything was ever going to change that thought. It was uncomfortable to me. Generally speaking, I didn't consider myself a hateful person. I really did like people and I didn't enjoy feeling any negative emotions towards others! Feeling such strong negative emotions, for my father of all people, was draining.

Soon, the door to the room opened up again and I Tallie ran into the room with tear-filled eyes. My little cousin ran up to me and latched on to me tightly.

"Why…why…" She sobbed, struggling to begin her sentence. "…why did you volunteer Icarus? Why did you confess to the escape attempt? Why?"

I winced at the tone of her voice. Tallie was not aware of the conversation I had with my father. She had no idea that he was going to pin the blame for everything on her and, therefore, wouldn't understand why I volunteered.

A part of me debated on telling her the truth, but I decided against it. Like it or not, if I died, she was stuck alone with my father. I'd rather her not hate the man if she was going to have to rely on him for a while longer.

"…we need the money Tallie." I answered her falsely.

"…money? Money? You're doing this for money?" Her sobbing seemingly grew louder. "…I could have worked more hours at the factory…"

"No, Tallie, no. You don't deserve to work yourself to death! You've worked god-knows how much more than you should have for a girl your age." I stated sharply as I pulled her away from me. I looked her directly into her tear-filled eyes and did my best to not cry with her. "Now…do me a favor. I will be gone for a few weeks, but I'll be back once I win the Games. In the meantime, don't work any excess hours. Just try and take care of yourself. My dad should be there to help, but you never know with him."

"I-I'll be fine. It's you who I should be worried about!" Tallie exclaimed, resisting the change in topic.

"Tallie, you know me. I'm fine. I'll be fine. I wouldn't have done such a reckless thing and enter the Games if I wasn't capable of winning. I'll be out, and we'll all have a much better life. I promise!" I informed her with a small smile on her face.

We remained like this for a few more minutes: Tallie crying in front of me while I did my best to try and cheer her up. As the peacekeeper opened the door to escort her out, she stopped crying and gave me a hard look.

"You…you promise me you'll be coming back home?" She asked.

"I promise. Cross my heart!" I told her with a smile.

She wiped away the remaining tears and gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Be careful Icarus…you're…smart enough to win. Please come back home…"

After those words, Tallie was escorted out of the room. She was the last person who would visit me. Not that I minded. I was introverted in nature and enjoyed the quiet.

My eyes wandered upwards toward the electric currents running through the clear ceiling of the room. I was going to have to get over my distaste of the energy by the time I got to the Capitol. Electricity was the only source of combat I had and it would be the tool that would help me get out the Hunger Games.

I wasn't going to be one of those tributes who whined about the Games. I volunteered for this. I knew exactly what I was getting involved in. And I knew I had the intellect and the tools to out of the Hunger Games alive. With that thought in mind, I sat down in the room and closed my eyes as I mapped out my general plan for the Games. I needed to make sure every little detail was perfect. I was going to get back home to Tallie. There was nothing any other tribute or any gamemaker could do to change that fact.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! Here's the second chapter! :)

A lot of you seemed to enjoy the idea I had on how I was writing my chapters. I'm glad! I feel it is a way that will keep the plot moving at a faster rate and won't slow it down.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and these four new sets of tributes! What did you all think of the tributes from district 8 and 5? Xander? Raven? Stephanie? Icarus?

I don't have much to say at the moment. Just know that I am beginning work on the next chapter now! Hopefully it'll be up within the week! I will see you all when it is finished! :)


	5. The Train: Comfort and Reason

**District 9**

**Demetriana "Demi" Walser's POV – District 9 Female**

_God, I need a drink._

It was kinda amusing to me. During the reaping after hearing my named called, I felt empty. I felt nothing as I talked to my family and my best friend Kendra for what was most likely going to be the last time. Now, as the peacekeepers escorted me out of the Justice Building and towards the train station in District Nine, all I could think about was getting something to drink. Hopefully the train would have something – preferably something strong.

Drinking was something that I had started three years ago. Whenever I was feeling sad or depressed, I would go find the nearest beer or wine I could get my hands on. Now, with the feeling of nothingness starting to fade as I approached the train to leave for the Capitol, I really needed a drink.

The District Nine escort, a woman named Aphrodite with brown hair, enough makeup that made her face look ghostly white, and the largest breasts I had seen on a woman, led me and my district partner inside the only train at the station. My eyes widened at the sight.

The train was gorgeous. It was entirely furnished with the nicest looking couches, tables, paintings, statues, and electronics. My family couldn't afford a single thing in this train, and this was just one room!

My eyes then focused on a particular table in the room with glasses of champagne. I quickly rushed over to it.

"Aphrodite, we can take a drink, correct? This is all for us, right?" I asked.

The woman nodded. "Go right ahead dearie. We at the Capitol spared no expense for our darling tributes!"

Aphrodite continued to speak, but I didn't really care to listen. I downed the first glass of champagne in one, long gulp. I could feel it going down my body and I sighed in relief. "Ohhh, you all got the good shit."

After finishing it, I quickly reached for another glass and started drinking it at a slower, more relaxed pace. Aphrodite looked at me in shock as she watched me drink.

"You aren't supposed to drink so much that fast! Don't you know that's not healthy for you?" She questioned frantically.

I rolled my eyes, ignoring her. She wasn't the first person to tell me something like that. I had been told that I drank too much by Kendra all the time. Honestly, I couldn't deny that. One of these days, it was going to be a problem. Hell, it probably already was! But I really couldn't stop drinking. It was a clutch for me. I drank whenever I was feeling depressed, and honestly, I had been constantly depressed for more than two years now.

I took another sip from my drink before I raised my glass towards my district partner, Jason. He was a black-haired boy that was very tall: at least six feet. He also had a bit of muscle on his body and his green eyes were focused on me. It was actually intimidating to me slightly and I quickly thought of a method to break any tension between us.

"You want a drink yourself?" I asked him. "It's not the strongest thing ever, but the taste is pretty good honestly."

"… No thanks. I don't drink." He mumbled softly.

"Suit yourself." I shrugged as I took a seat on the couch.

Jason took a seat as well, sitting across the room from me. My eyes continued to remain on the guy as a question entered my head. I didn't know a single thing about him, but the one thing I knew about him in particular made me very intrigued. Jason was a volunteer, and I was very curious about why he would want to enter the Games willingly. When I was sober, I wasn't much of a talker. Maybe it was the little bit of alcohol I had in me, but I really wanted to know his reasons for volunteering.

A few moments of silence passed before I finally voiced my curiosity. "So, who was that kid you volunteered for? That your brother or something?"

Jason shook his head in response. "No…"

"Your cousin then? Nephew? Best friend?" I continued to question. He, once again, shook his head to all my suggestions. "Then who was he?"

"… No one I knew." Jason answered uneasily, looking downward. From what little I observed in this conversation, he didn't seem like the kind of guy who was good at socializing and talking to people he didn't know. I took a sip of my champagne while I waited for him to continue. "He… he was just a little kid that didn't want to leave his family. I… I couldn't just let him go in to the Games and die… I had to volunteer for him…"

I spat out my drink in response.

"Demetriana! That is disgusting!" Aphrodite shouted at me in disgust.

Once again, I paid no attention to her and simply stared at Jason in complete bewilderment. "You're telling me that you volunteered for the Hunger Games, the HUNGER GAMES, because you felt bad for a little boy that you didn't even know?" He nodded his head in response. "Who are you? What are you? Are you suicidal or something?"

The 'suicide' comment was intended as a joke, but Jason gave no response and his eyes trailed even further downward. Understanding crawled over my face.

"Oh god… you really are suicidal." I realized.

"… I wouldn't call myself suicidal. I don't really want to die. But better than me than that little kid or someone else, you know? I mean, I was going to die sooner or later anyway…" He answered quietly with a shrug.

I nodded, but I couldn't help but still feel confused. I didn't really understand his answer.

Guess I couldn't understand his reasons to volunteer. I shrugged in indifference as I turned my attention back to the champagne in my hand. I quickly took another drink before finishing it off and reaching for my third glass.

I wouldn't have blamed Jason if he was suicidal. To be completely honest, there was a time in my life where I thought I would have killed myself. I used to be a really happy, rather loud girl all the time. I was so bright and innocent. Everything changed a few days after my sister's twentieth birthday. Her friends had convinced me to start drinking and I drank more than I should have and I got completely wasted. Then, one of her friends started to get really close to me…

No matter how many glasses of wine or bottles of beer I drank, I could never forget that night. I will never forget the feeling of being raped by that boy…

Of course, he claimed that it was consensual to anybody he talked to. He spent weeks talking about how I came onto him and how much I wanted him to anybody that would listen. The description he gave of me completely changed people's perception of me. Even to this day, I was still seen as some mindless slut.

In the back of my head, I realized that the Games probably would be a nice reprieve from that perception. There was no way that people watching would see me as a slut. I would be just the District Nine female tribute that may or may not be dying in the arena. And, knowing me, it would most likely be dying.

"What are you thinking about?" Jason questioned me, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I quickly looked back towards my district partner and shrugged. "Nothing in particular. Just life I guess."

"I do that from time to time." He chuckled in response. "I'm Jason by the way."

"I remember your name from the reaping. Nice to officially meet you though Jason." I tipped my glass of champagne slightly. "The name's Demetriana, although you can just call me Demi. I don't know many people that actually call me by my full name."

"Well met Demi." Jason said with a smile. I was surprised at how well it suit him. If he was dressed in little nicer clothes, I would have probably mistaken him for one of those young, Capitol gentlemen they show in cheesy movies. "I like your name."

I felt my cheeks start to redden slightly. _Damn alcohol._

"Thanks. It's kinda unique, isn't it? My parents actually named me after Demeter." I explained.

"Who is that? Is that an aunt of yours?" He asked in confusion.

I shook my head. I probably should have realized that not everyone would catch that reference. "No, she's the goddess of the harvest of one the dead, ancient religions: from a time way before Panem."

"You mean like Christianity or Buddhism?" Jason asked.

Again, I shook my head. I laughed a little before I continued to speak. "No, even older than those two. It was a religion from some faraway place called Greece with many different gods and goddesses, and Demeter was one of those goddesses."

Jason opened his mouth to say something else, but a loud, masculine voice interrupted him before he could start talking.

"Ah, did you guys start the drinking party without me?"

Jason and I turned our heads to the left and saw an older woman and man walking our way from one of the doors in the train. I recognized them both immediately: they were two of our three living victors, Flora and Einkorn.

Flora was the victor of the ninetieth Hunger Games and was now a woman of seventy-five. Most people don't live that long in the Districts, but Flora was not like most people! She was the daughter of a small clinician in the district and, therefore, knew everything about health and anything that was either life-saving or fatal. The arena she fought on was a large forest that had a giant river of freshwater running through it. Flora, after finding enough supplies in the arena, managed to poison the entire river by the fourth day and walked away that day as the victor. Eleven tributes died from drinking poisoned water. To this day, no victor from the non-career districts has ever reached her kill count.

Einkorn, the man who had interrupted Jason, was around forty years old and was the victor of the one hundred twenty-eighth Hunger Games. He was a loud, boisterous man in his interviews and in public and his fighting style in the arena reflected that. He carried around a giant warhammer and he was muscular enough to use it properly. Not a single tribute could defeat him in combat, not even the career tributes. He won the game in seven days with a total of six kills.

Both Flora and Einkorn were complete opposites in every category. One was quiet and stoic while the other was loud and obnoxious. One appeared to look old and frail while the other looked young and muscular. One won the Games using tactics by poisoning river water while the other simply won by simply overpowering his opponents. They represented two different styles of fighting entirely, but they were both lethal killers. They were also my hope to survive the Games.

"I was wondering where you two were!" Aphrodite stated happily. I actually forgot that the Capitol woman was even in the room. "And Einkorn, there won't be much of a 'drinking party' today as I'm trying to cut back on my alcohol consumption. The party will just be you and Miss Demetriana over there."

Einkorn looked over in my direction and his eyebrows rose in curiosity. "How much do you drink?"

"This is my third glass." I answered with a shrug as I took another sip.

"Feeling a little tipsy yet?" He asked.

I couldn't help but scoff. "Please. It would take me at least five of these before I feel anything."

"HA! I like this girl already!" The man let out a loud, hearty laugh. "Later today, I'll show you where the rest of the alcohol is. Believe me; you have not lived until you drink Capitol whiskey."

"I am looking forward to it!" I responded as I took another sip of my champagne, making not much of an attempt to hide the smirk on my face. It was going to be a very good thing to be in the good graces of one of my mentors already.

"Einkorn, sit. You too Aphrodite. We have much to talk about." Flora stated sharply as she took a seat on the couch next to Jason.

"Ah, we're getting down to business already." Einkorn sighed as he reached for a glass of champagne from the table as well. "Fine. Let's get this stuff out of the way."

The male victor and Aphrodite sat down on the couch seats next to me. Everyone in the room stared at Flora. Her eyes were moving back-and-forth between me and Jason in a calculated manner.

"First question: do either of you know how to use a weapon?" She questioned.

"I've been working on the grain fields since I was ten. I'm familiar with how to use a scythe, so I think I could maybe use it in the Games." I answered honestly. Although I only used it for the job, I was very familiar with the mechanics of a scythe and how to properly cut something with it. It was easily the most ideal weapon for me. I just hope I had enough skill with it to survive!

"Excellent. You would think we would get more grain workers in the Games that could actually use that thing. Not like I'm one to judge." Einkorn noted with a shrug. He then turned to Jason. "What about you?"

Jason looked downward. "Um… I work a little in the grain fields, but I'm not really good with the scythe at all…"

"That's alright. It's not a weapon for everyone. Too awkward for me, and with your build, I would assume for you too." Einkorn stated in understanding. "What would you rather work with instead?"

"… I um… well…" Jason mumbled quietly in response, barely being able to be heard.

"Are you not skilled with a weapon at all? I would have assumed you could use something properly if you were going to volunteer." Flora stated, shaking her head.

Jason responded by standing up. He then bowed his head. "Excuse me!"

With those words, he rushed out of the room into one of the other rooms in the train. All eyes were on him as he closed the door and walked away.

"What's got him all upset?" Aphrodite asked in confusion. "You haven't even said anything mean yet Flora!"

"I never say anything 'mean'. I'm simply critical." The female victor scoffed in response. "Still, I don't know what is bothering him. Perhaps he will be back. If he values his life, he'll be back to discuss the Games with us."

I couldn't help but frown in response. It was the first time I really thought about the killing aspect of the Games. If I was to get out of the Games, the other twenty-three tributes were going to die. That would include Jason. While I do think I could maybe kill someone in a fight, I didn't really enjoy the thought of my district partner dying. He seemed odd, and definitely a tad socially awkward, but I could tell he was a very nice guy from the little conversation that we had. It didn't seem fair to have to hope for him to die, even if that was the only way for me to get out alive…

_I think I'm going to have to take Einkorn up on his offer for the Capitol whiskey. _I was definitely going to need something strong for this whole 'Hunger Games' experience. Hell, I probably was gonna need at least a beer or two during the Games itself…

**Jason Icarus's POV – District 9 Male **

I wandered the train and its hallways until I found a bathroom. I quickly walked inside the room and looked at myself in the bathroom mirror and sighed.

In the back of my head, I knew it was very rude of me to just rush out of the room in the middle of conversation. Still, I had to get away. I knew that meeting the mentors would be uncomfortable for me, and it unfortunately lived up to all my expectations. It wasn't that I disliked either Einkorn or Flora, but I knew that they were going to have us talk about the Games and our plans for them, and honestly, I had no clue what the heck I was going to do for them.

_Heh._ They probably were excited when they saw me volunteer. I'm kinda a big guy and I have been told by some people in District Nine that at first glance, I look intimidating. They probably thought I was victor potential. Now, I bet they were starting to realize how incorrect that statement was…

It did feel surreal knowing that I was in the Hunger Games by choice. I would have never thought that would ever happen! But here I was, a volunteered tribute…

Looking back to the reaping, I realized I made a very rash, hasty decision. I always had a hard time watching the reaping and seeing kid after kid get reaped and dying each year. This was more than just cruel; it was completely unjust! So, when I saw a little twelve year old get called out for the Games and I saw him reach out to his family in the crowd for help, I couldn't hold myself back any longer. The injustices of the Games had to be stopped, so I did what I could to make sure at least one of them was stopped: I volunteered and took his place in the Games.

Seeing how relieved the little boy was and how grateful he and his family were was something that I would never forget. I would never regret the decision to take his place. However, I did act without fully thinking about what I was doing and now I was going to have to suffer the consequences of my actions. It didn't dawn on me until I was in the Justice Building and had to talk to my mother and my best friends that I was going into the Hunger Games and was going to have to fight for my life. Immediately afterward, I felt terrified!

I turned the faucet of the sink on and washed my face with the water. A few seconds passed before I turned it off and looked at my reflection. My face was now dripping with water, and it was covering any tears that I may have let out. As I stared at my reflection, I couldn't help but repeat questions in my head. What was I doing here? What was I going to do? Was I going to die?

The answer to the last question was, most likely, yes. I didn't think I could kill a person. One thing that I had been told by people was that I am too kind: that I care too much for other people. I never really considered that a weakness, but in the arena, it would be a major issue. I did not have the 'killer instinct' that the careers and the victors had. But, was that really a trait that someone should want to have? What kind of society do we live in where ruthlessness was promoted in the children?

Perhaps I could spend my last few days helping some of the other tributes out? Maybe make an alliance and protect them. I didn't know what I was going to do for the Games. It was all still confusing to me!

A few minutes passed before I sighed and walked out of the bathroom. I was still uneasy about returning to talk about the Games with my mentors, but I had already been gone for too long. My mother raised me to be polite to everyone I met, so I needed to return, apologize, and continue with the conversation, no matter how uncomfortable it may be for me.

I made my way back to the main room and saw my mentors, Aphrodite, and Demi all talking about the Games. The conversation quickly ended, though, when they noticed my presence in the room.

"I was wondering when you would come back!" Aphrodite exclaimed loudly as she looked at me with a frown. "Where did you run off to young man?"

I flinched at her tone-of-voice before I spoke up quietly: "S-Sorry… I had to use the restroom for a second…"

"I believe it took longer than a second, but it does not matter. You aren't wasting our time. You are wasting yours." Flora responded coldly.

Once again, I flinched. The same uncomfortable feeling resurfaced in my body. This time, though, I fought the urge to run back to the bathroom and instead walked back to my spot on the couch.

"To fill you in briefly, we were just talking about basic arena strategy. Stuff like don't rush into the cornucopia blindly for your ideal weapon. Don't wander the arena carelessly. Don't piss off anyone in the training period before the Games. Just a bunch of basic things you probably could've figured out with common sense." Einkorn explained to me.

"We also agreed that I would be focusing most of my time on training Miss Walser while Einkorn would be focusing on training you. I trust you find this acceptable?" Flora questioned me.

I nodded. Flora intimidated with her general demeanor, so I was more than happy to have Einkorn be the one to help me out with anything.

"We'll continue going over advice in a little bit. The Capitol is going to show the live recaps of the reapings on television soon, so we're gonna watch that before continuing." Einkorn added.

Once again, I nodded.

The television in the room eventually turned on and displayed a room with the symbol for Panem in the background. A well-dressed, muscular man with short hair with pink, green, and blue highlights walked into the room and sat down at a table with a microphone. I recognized him immediately – all of Panem knew the face of Sapphire Taric. He was a famous talk-show host in the Capitol and, for the past ten years, had been the man in charge of doing all press-related shows for the Hunger Games.

Needless to say, if you were from the districts, he was one of the last people you wanted to see on the television screen.

"Gooooooood afternoon Panem. Happy Hunger Games to all and may the odds be ever in your favor!" He exclaimed happily to the camera. "Can you all believe it? One hundred and fifty years since the beginning of the Hunger Games. It's already time for the Sixth Quarter Quell! Oh, doesn't time go by so fast!"

"… Mr. Taric is a sweetheart, but he talks so loud." Aphrodite complained a little. I chuckled a little in agreement.

"Do we still not know what the twist is for this year's Games?" Demi asked as she took a sip of her champagne glass. I noticed this one was a completely filled glass, meaning that she probably was drinking another one. Was this her fourth glass or her fifth?

"Nope. President Draven still wants it to be a surprise." Einkorn answered with a sigh.

"It'll be a pleasant surprise: one that will really spice up the Games!" Aphrodite exclaimed, her voice sounding nearly as loud and annoying as Taric's voice.

"If by 'pleasant surprise' you mean another way to fuck over the lives of innocent children, then yes, I would agree with you. It will be a 'pleasant surprise'." Flora replied with an eye roll.

Aphrodite stared at Flora in shock for her comment. Einkorn started to laugh loudly while Demi and I settled for chuckling lightly. I didn't realize that a woman like Flora would enjoy telling jokes!

Then again, that seemed more like a bitter, truthful statement than a joke.

Taric continued his speech for a good ten minutes before he finally stopped talking and the screen changed images to the reapings.

The first image was the bright, shiny District One. Its tributes were standard in the sense that they were both Career volunteers. The girl was tall and muscular with wavy, blondish-brown hair. There was an arrogant expression on her face, but she seemed more tired and annoyed than anything else.

Her district partner had blonde hair and was actually smaller than most other District One boys; both in height and in muscle size. Still, the boy had multiple scars on his arms and there was no visible emotion present in his pale green eyes, which unnerved me.

The television screen flashed the names of the One tributes: Kendra Perone and Ariail Bardineux. Demi's face immediately paled after reading the names.

"The girl from District One is named Kendra? That's the name of my best friend…" She stated, gripping her champagne glass tightly.

"That girl is as stereotypically career as they get. She probably has nothing in common with your friend. Don't worry: you won't be imagining your friend when she dies." Einkorn informed her.

Demi frowned in response and quickly took a long drink of her champagne. I understood exactly how she felt. It didn't matter if their personality was the complete opposite from the namesake you were familiar with: a name had powerful images and memories attached to them. My best friends, Lacy and John, meant the whole word. I don't know what I would do if any of the tributes reaped had their names!

Soon, the screen switched images and showed the grittier District Two. A girl quickly volunteered for the Games and rushed forward to the stage. She was short with straight, black hair, but she also looked rather muscular. She smiled to the cameras and the people happily. Unfortunately for her, her district partner stood out more than her due to one major reason: he was not a volunteer.

The District Two boy, upon getting reaped, hugged someone his age in the crowd before he walked forward to the center stage. No one volunteered, probably because no one stood as much of a chance as him. He was well over six foot and he had very visible muscles that could be seen despite his baggy clothing. He was, by far, the most muscular person I had ever seen.

The names Victoire McBlock and Lepolio Huang flashed on the screen before the dark, green-less video of District Three appeared. Unlike the previous two districts, the Three tributes were clearly not in any way prepared for the Games and both appeared nervous. The Three girl had olive-colored, kinda grimy skin with dark brown hair. She walked forward with a vacant expression on her face, but I could tell she was trying to hide her fear.

The District Three boy, however, made no attempt to hide his fear. He was a tall, pale, lanky boy with dirty blonde hair. The expression on his face made me feel horrible: it was the face of resigned defeat. It was as if the Three boy was seemingly accepting death.

_This really wasn't right._ None of this was right at all! What did we do to deserve this treatment? A rebellion may have happened, but that was one hundred fifty years ago. None of us were involved! Why were we getting punished?

Determination filled my eyes as I finally realized what my purpose was in the Games. I didn't believe I could win and I was not going to try to win. No, my purpose was to be an example. I was going do my best to show the people, both in the districts and in the Capitol, how wrong these Games were. I will willingly become a martyr. If my death could spark a flame that will one day end these Games, then I'll have lived a meaningful life and will have died appropriately!

I had no idea how I was going to do it, but I was determined to accomplish this goal. I will do everything in my power during these next few days to take the Hunger Games down with me!

With this newfound motivation in my mind, I continued to watch the screen. The names of the Three tributes, Kaylee Harper and Ethan Neurus, appeared. They were then replaced with the sunny, blue image of District Four.

District Four was a surprise to all of us: none of the tributes were volunteers! The girl was of average height with light brown hair and she was, in my honest opinion, very pretty. She appeared calm at first as she walked on to the stage, but her eyes twitched when she realized she was going into the Games. Her eyes wandered to the crowd, as if she was looking at someone. A family member perhaps?

The boy looked very typical for a District Four boy: tall, tan skin, brown hair, and handsome. He didn't seem too nervous when he realized no one was volunteering for him. He looked capable, and he himself probably realized that. Their names, Alaska Dayte and Cascade Bolt, appeared briefly before the image of District Four vanished.

District Five was the next district shown and the reaping began almost immediately. The girl was short and had blonde hair that was tied in a bun. She had glasses over her blue eyes and she was making a strong, conscious effort to appear tough. I could tell she was nervous, but she was trying to act strong and proud. Probably to appeal to sponsors.

Her partner was, surprisingly, a volunteer. The boy was rather wiry and had unkempt black hair. There was also visible burn marks right under his neck. It looked as if the scars continued down his dress shirt. His whole chest was probably burned! He looked completely emotionless on the stage as he walked up – similar to a robot. It appeared as if he was about to something, but the screen quickly changed images to reveal the names of the Five tribute: Stephanie Volk and Icarus Bolt.

_Icarus? His name is my last name?_

… _I wonder what he is like._

I did not have long to think about the Five boy with my name, as the image of District Six showed up on the television screen. The girl that was reaped was tan, had brown hair, and had the darkest blue eyes I had ever seen. She also seemed slightly malnourished. The girl walked up to the stage with confidence not usually seen in tributes like her and I was already seeing her as a potential victor.

The District Six reaping quickly turned to chaos as a tall, muscular boy with short brown hair stormed forward and accused her of crimes. He then quickly volunteered, claiming he wanted to see the girl punished by his own hands. The two Six tributes started to verbally argue until the screen faded away.

The television screen switched to playing commercials. There was a thirty minute intermission between the first six reapings and the last six each year. This gave us tributes to digest information slowly and time to talk.

"Well, it looks like you all don't have to worry about District Six this year at all. I'm willing to bet they both kill each other!" Einkorn laughed.

Demi quickly drank the rest of her champagne glass in one gulp before she responded to Einkorn in a voice that was slurred. "They both… they both look tough, though. Whoever lives after their battle… they will be a major threat."

She quickly reached for another glass of champagne and started drinking again. I had only known her for less than a day, but I could already tell that drinking was a clutch – a nervous tic of hers. Judging by the rate she was consuming her alcohol, she was deathly afraid of what was going to happen.

I couldn't blame her. Even if I wasn't planning to come out of the Games alive, I was terrified. This was going to be the most horrifying experience of my life.

* * *

**District 4**

**Cascade Bolt's POV – District 4 Male**

When the thirty minute intermission started, everyone left the room and wandered around the train. I was the only one that remained in the room to watch mindless, idiotic Capitol commercials on the television. Guess I was the only who had nothing better to do. Not that I minded too much. I liked to consider myself reserved. A little time by myself gave me some time to think about this mess I was in.

It wasn't often that a career district such as District Four didn't have volunteers. It was also unheard of for both tributes to just be reaped tributes. But here I was: one of two reaped tributes for this year's Hunger Games. I had no intentions of volunteering for the Hunger Games before. Maybe that would change when I turned seventeen or eighteen, but I was just fifteen years old. Never once did I imagine being in the Hunger Games this young!

_Not that it matters much in the end_. Like most kids my age in District Four, I had received proper training. I was rather good with a spear and I knew how to fight with my fists. I've gotten into many fights with a bunch of dumbasses my age over the stupidest shit.

Needless to say, I was a trained fighter. The Hunger Games weren't anything I had planned on entering, but I had no doubt in my mind that I could handle them. Back in the Justice Building, I had a pretty emotional conversation with my older brother, Dylan. He told me that he loved me and then told me to do anything to come back home, and I was going to do just that. I was going to come out of them a victor and return to him and the rest of my family.

I remained in the room by myself for about fifteen minutes before one of the doors opened up, revealing my district partner, Alaska. She had changed clothes out of her reaping dress and was wearing more casual clothes. She was wearing a pair of black shorts and a brown t-shirt that matched her hair-color. Her casual clothes were, surprisingly, a lot more revealing than her dress. Not that I was complaining. Alaska was smoking hot! Although, in my honest opinion, that was the only positive trait about her…

"Did you stay here?" She questioned me as she sat down on her position on the couch opposite of me.

"Eh, yeah. I didn't have anything else to do." I answered with a shrug.

"You weren't at all curious to explore the train? See your room?" She continued to prod with confused eyes.

"What's the point? I'll be over there to check the stuff out in a little bit. Besides, we were all gonna come back in here to watch the rest of reapings in thirty minutes. How much exploring can you do in that amount of time?" I explained, rolling my eyes slightly.

"I was only gone for maybe fifteen minutes tops, but I was able to explore most of the back half of the train, check out my room, and I had the time to change my clothes." She commented with a smirk.

"… was that supposed to impress me or something?" I rolled my eyes.

Alaska frowned in response. Her frown then quickly disappeared as a wide smile crossed her face. She giggled a little before speaking: "I was just listing a few of the things you could've done instead of just sitting down on your lazy ass."

I glared at the girl in front of me, tightening my fists. I had to make a conscious effort to not get out of my seat and give her a punch straight into her jaw.

I normally didn't hold in my anger when people pissed me off; I would confront them and give them a solid punch or kick to release the anger! However, I couldn't go around attacking Alaska, or any of the other tributes for that matter. I didn't want to risk getting on the bad-side of the Capitol and endanger my chances in the arena. With this in my mind, I tried my hardest to fume internally and not attack her.

A few more minutes passed of tense silence before the rest of our company joined us. The District Four escort, Triton, walked in followed by our mentors for this year's games: Aqua and Storm.

Aqua was the victor of the one hundred thirtieth Hunger Games and won the Games when she was fifteen, just like me. That year was a rather boring year for the Games; at least at the beginning. The careers dominated the entire Games together all the way until the final six. They then had an epic showdown amongst each other. Aqua was skilled at using knives and was very quick, so she was able to outmaneuver and avoid all attacks and manage to deal lethal blows against her former Career allies. She won after finally managing to get a good hit on her district partner and left the arena with seven kills.

Storm was, actually, the most recent victor. He was nineteen and had just won the year before. The guy looked no different than he did in the Games: tall, muscular, scary-looking red-haired guy who looked ready to pounce on anything that moved. He was undoubtedly lethal with an axe and managed to tear apart his competition limb from limb – literally! He won in five days with a kill count of twelve.

Aqua and Storm looked at Alaska and I with distaste as they walked into the room, saying nothing to us. I could tell that they were disappointed with us not being volunteers. I had heard rumors that District Four mentors were very against the non-volunteer tributes. Guess they were true.

It didn't really matter too much to me though. I would prove them both wrong in due time!

More silence passed in the room until the television screen lit up with the image of the reapings.

District Seven was the first to be seen, in all of its green glory. The first tribute shown after the thirty minute break was a little twelve year old girl with brown hair. She was the tiniest kid I had ever seen enter the Hunger Games. Rightfully so, she looked terrified on the stage.

"Looks like we know who is winning the Games this year." I commented dryly.

My joke earned a light chuckle from Aqua. Good. Maybe this is an early sign that I can earn at least one of my mentors' support.

After the little girl was on the stage, her partner was chosen. The boy was much more intimidating than her, although that didn't say much. He was tall, skinny, and had brown curly hair similar to an afro. He, himself, didn't look that strong, but the way he had stormed onto the stage and the way he looked into the camera – with angry, crazed eyes – made me a little concerned about him as a possible threat. It wasn't uncommon to have a complete nut in the Games and it looked like he could be this year's token crazy.

The names Winnie Goldstein and Raegae Oak flashed on screen before they disappeared. District Seven was replaced with the image of the grey, smoke-covered District Eight. The girl was rather unremarkable in my opinion. She was of average height with blonde hair in a pony-tail. She looked kinda cute, but nothing too special. She seemed standard for the bloodbath like most girls her age from her district were.

The District Eight boy looked even worse than she did. He was a fat, brown-haired boy that looked like he was going to pass out any second. After getting on the stage, he ended up vomiting, scaring the District Eight escort.

"HA!" I couldn't hold back my laughter. "Okay, I stand corrected. THIS guy is the victor for this year's Games!"

"Dick." Alaska commented off-handedly, her eyes focused solely on the television.

I was about to fire a comment back at her when the image of District Eight, along with the tributes, Raven Bell and Xander Lugar, faded.

District Nine appeared next and the girl was quickly called onto the stage. She was tan and had long, bright blonde hair that went down to her back and she looked like she had a bit of muscle on her. I studied her intently, looking for any hint of emotion to gauge what she was like. I couldn't see any. I couldn't read her at all, and that was something I did not like.

A little twelve year old brat was reaped with her. I was about to make another sarcastic comment about the competition, but then a loud voice was heard from the television: "I volunteer!"

Everyone's eyes widened. _Another outer district volunteer? _

The little twelve year old boy was replaced with a tall, muscular boy with shaggy black hair. Based on sheer size alone, he was second only to the District Two boy. That made me very cautious. This guy was going to be a threat. He was going to have to die as soon as possible!

The names Demetriana Walser and Jason Icarus appeared on the screen. I made a mental note to remember 'Jason' as I watched the names disappear, along with the image of District Nine.

District Ten was next on the list of reapings in all of its country glory. The girl that was reaped walked on to the stage with determination on her face. She had brown hair, tan skin, and was rather built. She looked like one of the stereotypical cattle ranchers from her district. There was an off-chance that she could be a threat, but it wasn't anything I was going to worry about right away. I will see what she is like in the training!

The District Ten escort called out a name for the male tribute, but before the boy was able to walk out of his place in the crowd, a barely-audible voice spoke up. "I volunteer."

"What the fuck?" I couldn't hold back myself from shouting.

"Four outer district volunteers! Are you shitting me?" Storm hissed.

It appeared as if the Capitol wasn't 'shitting' us. A rather tall boy with olive-colored skin rushed forward to the stage and eagerly declared himself as the tribute. Immediately upon seeing him, I was disturbed. Sure, he was muscular, but that was not what was unnerving. The Ten boy looked psychotic. He was grinning on the stage like a madman, he was moving around uneasily in place, and his eyes contained a deranged quality to them.

I took back everything I said about the District Seven boy. This guy here was going to be the token crazy of this year's Games! I was already looking forward to the day when this piece of shit would be dead.

The names of the Ten tributes, Maddison Holland and Logan Faber, showed up. Just like I did with Jason, I made a conscious effort to remember the name 'Logan'. He was another early target for me!

The television screen then shows the image of District Eleven. The girl that was reaped gasped loudly before she started walking, shaking like a scared puppy. She was a girl with honey-like skin with brown, braided hair and a pair of glasses over her amber brown eyes. The girl proceeded to trip on her way to the stage. By the time she pulled herself up and reached the stage, she was crying rather loudly.

After two volunteers that appeared intimidating, it was nice to see a weak, stereotypical outer district tribute. It was good to know that there was still a few easy kills.

The male tribute didn't seem much better than her. He had light brown-colored skin and had long, golden brown hair. He was average height and built for a guy his age. Just like his partner, he was also crying when he got onto the stage.

Florina Everett and Bane Darnell were the names that flashed up on my screen, but I doubted that I would remember them much later. There was no real reason to remember the names of bloodbath fodder.

It was now time for the final reaping. The dirty, disgusting image of District Twelve showed up on the television screen. A few seconds passed before the District Twelve girl was reaped. She was a blonde-haired girl with glasses and freckles that had olive-colored skin. She walked forward with a smirk. She appeared to be brave to the crowd, but I could tell she was faking it. I had seen enough girls from District Twelve get reaped each year. They all had that same, fake face. Deep down, she was probably scared she was going to die. Realistically speaking, she was probably right.

The District Twelve male had a similar idea to his district partner as he walked forward with a bright, cheerful smile. He was slightly tall with unkempt brown hair and he was definitely malnourished. He seemed a little more comfortable than his district partner with his smile, but I could still tell it was fake. He, just like her, was most likely going to die early in the Games.

The names, Emery Aspen and Yaro Hailstien, flashed on the screen. Immediately after, the image from the television screen changed to the image of Sapphire Taric. The reapings were now finally complete.

"And there you have it ladies and gentlemen! Those were your twenty-four tributes for this year's Hunger Games!" Taric exclaimed to the cameras with a dazzling smile. His teeth seemed to glow unnaturally. "Tune in two hours from now for my commentary on the tributes. I will be taking your calls on which tributes you think stand the best chance of winning this year's Quarter Quell! And as usual, we are still taking your calls about what you think this year's Quarter Quell twist will be. Let us know. We all want to know! I'm Sapphire Taric, and I will see you all later. May the odds, always, be in your favor."

After his little speech, the image on the television faded away.

"So, what are your initial thoughts on the tributes?" Triton questioned Alaska and me.

"The other careers look pretty tough. In particular, the guy from District Two." I answered with a shudder. I was pretty thankful that, as careers, I wouldn't have to try and take down him until much later in the Games. "Other than them, the only ones that seemed possibly dangerous were the boys from District Nine and Ten."

"I'd agree, and would add both tributes from District Six, as well as the boy from Five." Alaska commented. I nodded in agreement. I wasn't too nervous about the District Five boy, but he was a volunteer as well and that was enough reason to be cautious around him.

"Hmph." Storm scowled as he got out of his seat in the couch. He gave both Alaska and I a glare. "I hope you both are proud of being a part of history. Not only is this the first year that District Four has had no volunteers, it is also the first year in Hunger Games history where there are more non-career district volunteers than career volunteers.

I stood up immediately and glared at my mentor. "If you weren't paying attention, the guy from Two wasn't a volunteer either! But disregarding that, I am clearly more capable than just some random reaped tribute. I'm trained, and I will this year's Games!"

"Big talk. You think quite highly of yourself. We'll see how long your ego holds once you are in the training room with the actual volunteers." Storm stated coldly.

I felt my hand tighten. _That bastard! _

I couldn't stop myself. I punched Storm in the face, knocking him back slightly. Triton gasped loudly in shock while Aqua and Alaska stared at me in quiet shock. Storm seemed to have no outward reaction; he simply stared at me.

"It's not 'big talk'. I can handle myself in the Games. You'll see!" I hissed at him.

Storm said nothing as he rubbed his cheek where I had hit him. A few seconds passed before a small grin developed on his face.

"Not a bad arm you got there." He stated with a chuckle. "But you clearly have anger problems. I'd advise you try and control them, otherwise you're going to get into a fight with someone much stronger than you are and die in the process."

With a scoff, I raised my middle finger before I turned around and left the room.

**Alaska Dayte's POV – District 4 Female**

"That dumbass…" I mumbled, more to myself than anyone else.

My first opinion of Cascade was that he was a quiet, but generic pretty-boy from the district. He was the same young, tanned skin, attractive guy that Capitol women seemed to flock around ever since Finnick Odair almost a hundred years ago. After one look, I had expected him to be arrogant. That I was correct about. What I was not expecting him to be a loose-cannon who would be willing to even punch his own mentor in the face!

"I wasn't kidding. That temper of his is going to get him killed if he can't control it." Storm commented nonchalantly. I noticed he was no longer rubbing his cheek, meaning that any pain he felt was probably gone.

"I guess I'll be the one to mentor him. I'll try and see if I can calm the boy down before he goes into the arena." Aqua noted with a sigh. "Kids like him need to really learn a lesson or two. When I have kids, I'll definitely teach them how to control their emotions!"

After that comment, Aqua stood up from her seat and excused herself as she left the room in the direction Cascade had stormed out in. Most likely to go to talk to him. That left me with Triton and Storm, who was most likely going to be my mentor.

"Cascade was very clear to reveal the fact that he had been trained beforehand. What about you?" Storm questioned me.

"Not official training, no. I have had some basic training with weapons though." I admitted with a sigh.

I was probably one of the few girls who had no interest in training for the Hunger Games. In hindsight, I should've trained in case the day came where I was reaped into the games – like I was now, but I had always assumed there would be a volunteer to take my place! But here I was, on the train to the Capitol, and my brother was left alone…

Discomfort filled my body as I thought of my brother. Oanou was a great little brother: the best I could have ever asked! However, I was very nervous about how he could handle living by himself. Our parents had been dead for three years after an accident on their fishing boat, leaving me alone as his only caretaker. And Oanou himself was, in the politically incorrect terms of District Four, mentally disabled.

'Disabled' was definitely not the word I would use to describe him, but he was very innocent and naïve about the way society works. I was afraid that by himself, he would do something that would get him in trouble. He could get himself arrested or worse…

He needed someone to look after him. That's why I needed to get out of the Games as the victor as fast as I possibly can!

"Are you listening to me?"

I was snapped out of my thoughts. Storm was glaring at me, waiting for me to answer a question of his.

"Um, I zoned out for a second. What did you ask me?" I asked sheepishly. Mentally, I cursed at myself for not paying attention. All I could hope for was that I didn't disappoint him anymore.

Storm's eyes narrowed into a glare before he continued to speak. "What weapons are you skilled with?"

"Knives and daggers. I can also tie knots very well." I answered with a grin.

Back when my parents were alive, I would help my father out with his business as a fisherman. I've chopped up many fish before and I, genuinely, was interested in the tool. I was very skilled with the weapon and I could easily win the Games with them.

"Good." Storm nodded in acceptance. "I have to say, you seem capable for a non-volunteer. You're athletic and, if you have any skill with a knife and making traps, then you will be fine. You'll also benefit from being attractive."

"… excuse me?" I asked in a shocked tone-of-voice.

"Don't think I'm coming on to you or anything. I'm just pointing out a fact. It will help get Capitol sponsors." The mentor elaborated.

I nodded in understanding, but I still felt a little crept out. It did bother me that a good portion of my sponsorships were probably going to come from perverted Capitol men. However, if they were going to help me get out of the Games faster, than that was the plan.

"Do you have some general advice for the arena?" I asked him.

"That will come later. It's late right now, and we have plenty of time to discuss that in much more detail. What I will say is simple: stick with the careers early on. The benefits you'll receive from being with them are very helpful." Storm advised.

Outwardly, I nodded in agreement and understanding. Inwardly, I frowned. Truthfully, I had no interest in working with the careers. I was the kind of girl who did better off by myself. I really didn't care how well-trained the other careers were, I just knew that I would do better by myself if I didn't have to worry about them and whether or they would cut my throat in my sleep.

A few minutes passed before Storm dismissed himself. With him gone, I stood up from my seat and decided it was about time for me to return back to my room and enjoy some time by myself.

"Alaska? A moment, if you please."

I turned my head around and saw Triton still in the room. I had forgotten he was in here!

Triton was a rather odd for a Capitol citizen. He looked, honestly, like another man his age from District Four. He had tan skin and short blonde hair. He didn't wear any of the Capitol makeup or any exuberant clothing. He looked just the fishermen from the district.

"Can I help you Triton?" I asked politely.

"I just wanted to talk for a little bit, if you didn't mind." He asked.

I nodded before sitting back down on the couch.

"Well, I kinda make it a habit of mine to talk to any of the non-volunteer tributes I get and… well… how are you feeling?" He asked me in a caring tone-of-voice.

"How am I feeling?" I scoffed. "I feel great!"

"You can talk to me. I won't tell either Aqua, Storm, or anyone in the Capitol about this. I just want to know… are you sure you feel great?" He continued to question.

His tone-of-voice was so sincere that it startled me. For a moment, I forgot that I was talking to a man from the Capitol. He sounded a little similar to how my father used to talk to me.

"Well, I, um…" I mumbled in response. A few moments of hesitation came into my mind before I finally sighed. "… not really."

"… then how are you really feeling?" He repeated his question.

"I'm… I'm worried." I answered truthfully, my eyes looking downward.

"About your chances?" He questioned.

I shook my head. "Honestly, no. I don't mean to sound arrogant or anything, but I do think I stand a good chance to come out of the Games alive. I'm just… I'm really worried about my brother."

Something told me that I could trust him. It was a gut feeling based on no logic, but I felt at ease with him. So, I explained to Triton about Oanou. I explained his condition to him and how I was worried about him being left alone in District Four while I was gone.

Triton did not say anything while I spoke. He simply listened, nodding his head in understanding. Once I finished talking, he remained quiet in deep thought. A few seconds passed before he smiled at me.

"I'll take care of him." He told me.

_Huh?_

"Wh-What do you mean by that?" I asked him cautiously.

"I have connections in District Four to a few of the mentors. I'll make a few calls and have some of them keep an eye on your house and your brother while you're gone. I can easily get someone." Triton responded, his smile seemingly brighter in my eyes. "He'll have someone watching him while you're gone. And… in the worst case events… he will have someone to look after him no matter what happens."

My eyes widened in shock. I could feel myself shake as I processed everything that he had said.

"Y-You… can't be serious. Can you actually do all of that?" I mumbled in a very weak voice.

"Of course. It won't be a problem for me at all." He replied with a shrug.

I jumped out of my seat and grabbed the escort and pulled him into a hug. I actually felt a few tears fall from my eyes. Normally I'd try and hide them, but I could honestly care less at the moment.

"Thank you. Thank you so much!" I exclaimed, tightening my hug.

The hug took Triton by surprise, but the Capitol man quickly returned it with one of his own.

"Don't thank me. I'm just doing what I can to help you. I don't want to have you worrying about your brother while you are in the arena. You need to be focused on yourself. Your brother will be fine." He told me, rubbing my back in a comforting gesture.

"I will, I will. Promise." I responded with a smile of my own.

Nearly a minute passed before we separated from our hug. I quickly wiped away the tears from my eyes.

"Sorry about that, I don't normally cry like that." I apologized. "It's… kinda been a long day."

"I understand completely." Triton nodded in understanding. "Go off to bed and take a nap. We can talk more when you wake up, or in the morning maybe."

"Of course." I replied with a smile. "Goodnight Triton."

Triton smiled and waved, telling me goodnight. With those words, I left the room.

I walked through the hallway in the train until I found my room. I entered it and quickly lay down on my bed.

Triton really helped me out in more ways than I thought. All throughout the day, I was concerned about Oanou and whether or not he would be okay without me. Now, I knew that someone would be watching him. Even if I died, he would have somebody to take care of him. That made me feel so relieved. All of the worries I had about the Games had completely vanished.

I would not necessarily call myself arrogant, but I knew that I was skilled. I was fast, I knew how to use knives, and I could tie knots. There were many strengths I could think of when I thought about my chances. I did have a legitimate chance. Whether I was with the careers or by myself, I stood a chance.

I was going to do everything I could to come back a victor, to honor my parents' names and to return home to Oanou.

With this last thought, I was able to fall into peaceful sleep.

* * *

**Author's Note:** And here is the next chapter everybody!

I really appreciate all the support that I have received in the reviews. Thank you all so much for reading and I hope you all continue to enjoy the story that I have planned!

I would also like to make a comment about something an anonymous reviewer said. While I do appreciate the need to defend me (I really do!) I would also like to clarify that I welcome criticism. Anyone that has anything they want to say to me about my writing style can say anything in a review or a PM. I would honestly love to hear any of it! My goal is to become a published author soon, so I would really appreciate anything that can help me improve my writing quality! And, in addition, I would love to be able to write higher quality works for all of you.

So yeah, this was the train ride to the Capitol. What did you all think of the tributes from District Nine (Demi and Jason) and District Four (Cascade and Alaska)? I'm really excited to hear about your opinions!

And now, it is time to start working on the next chapter. I will have it up as soon as it is finished! See you all then! :)


	6. The Capitol: Lifestyle and Determination

**District 10 **

**Maddison Holland's POV – District 10 Female**

The sun had just risen over the horizon when I got up and got ready for the day. By the time I had finished and walked out to the main sitting on the train, I had realized that I was the only one awake. _Again._

It seemed like I was the only one here who didn't enjoy sleeping in. Everyone else would probably remain asleep for at least another three hours. The idea of sleeping in that long bothered me. There were only a handful hours each day and the idea of wasting a few of them on a little extra sleep just seemed so foreign to me. I honestly didn't get how the others can just waste their time in bed.

_Then again, perhaps I was the odd one_. Compared to everyone else on the train, I grew up in a different environment. I was raised on my family's ranch and I had been working on it since I was six. For the past ten years, I would wake up at the crack of dawn and start tending to the cattle. With the exception of a few breaks in the day, I'd continue working well past sunset. Every day was like that and my body was used to this routine. I doubt that I could sleep in even if wanted to.

A frown crept onto my face as I thought back to my life at home. I missed the work and the cows, but more than that, I missed my family. I missed my mother's lame jokes and her ability to make me laugh at any given moment. I missed my father's caring smile and I missed waking up and working with him every day. I missed my little brother Dustin and his innocence. His love for life was something I respected so much and being around him just made me happier. Hell, I even missed my older brothers Leon and Judd. Sure, we competed all the time, fought like rampaging bulls, and they had a tendency to act like a bunch of idiots, but they were always fun to go on adventures with and they were good guys.

We were all family and they all had been part of my life for as long as I can remember. These past few days on route to the Capitol did not feel the same at all. It felt weird just being away from my family and my home.

This desire to return home was what was fueling me. I was going to do anything I could to get back to my family! I don't care what I was going to have to do, even if it involved killing a few other people…

With that thought in my head, I walked over to the television screen and turned it on. I then turned on a rerun of the one hundred forty-ninth Hunger Games, the one from the previous year. Each morning and night, I turned on the previous Games and studies the strategies of the tributes. I made sure to note why certain tributes died and why the victors survived.

The television screen showed the video from where I stopped last night: at the final eight. The career pack had just dissolved and the remaining, living careers were fighting. It was a three-way showdown between the girl from District One, the boy from District Two, and the winner of last year's Games: Storm Geronimo, the boy from District Four. They were all fighting on the rubble and ruins of some ancient civilization from the time before Panem.

Storm and the girl from District One were in direct, melee-range combat. His axe clashed directly against her sword. From a distance, the boy from District Two was hiding behind a column with a bow in his hand. He was trying to hit them both from afar with his arrows. Storm and the girl were able to avoid his arrows while still continuing their fight.

Two minutes of straight fighting occurred before Storm jumped backwards away from the District One girl. He then tossed his axe as hard as he could at the boy from District Two. The Two boy, for some reason, was not expecting either him or the girl to go after him until they had killed the other. Therefore, he did not see the axe coming until it was buried deep into his forehead. He hit the ground hard and the sound of a cannon was heard in the distance.

Storm then ran over to the deceased body of the Two boy and pulled out his axe from his head. The girl from District One charged him, gripping her sword tightly. The District Four boy responded by kicking up some of the rubble with his foot upward as she got in close. She hesitated for a second as her vision became hazy from the dust, which gave Storm the opening he needed. The soon-to-be victor quickly entered his axe into her head. She was dead instantly.

The Two boy and the One girl should have been paying more attention. The guy should have realized he wasn't being as stealthy as he thought he was and that he could still be attacked. The girl, also, should have paid more attention to her surroundings and should have expected a dirty attack like Storm kicking up rubble. They were both strong tributes, but they both fucked up badly and that cost them their lives.

Hopefully, me learning from their mistakes would save mine!

Two hours passed by as I continued to watch the Games. The boy from Eleven died from an earthquake. The District Five girl was betrayed by her ally, the girl from District Twelve, and murdered. Storm was able to find the two tributes from District Eight and kill them both. There was only two tribute left: Storm and the girl from District Twelve. My eyes remained focused as I prepared to watch the final showdown.

"Watching the Games still, I see. How long have you been up?" A voice called out to me.

I turned around and saw Julian, District Ten's only living victor. He was a man in his early fifties that was completely bald. He was below average height and slightly chubby, but I could tell he was a capable man. He got his hands on a gun at the final six and was able to go town, earning himself three kills with his impeccable aim and ingenuity, causing him to win the one hundred thirty-seventh Hunger Games.

"I probably been up for a li'l over two hours." I answered with a shrug.

"I see." He said with a sigh as he walked over to see what Games I was watching. "Ah, so you are watching last year's? That was a painful year to follow. Storm was a real savage beast, you know?"

"I've noticed." I answered with a shiver. Some of his kills were rather graphic. I seriously hoped that I or anyone else this year died like a few of his victims. "But I'll be damned if I don't say he's good."

Watching Storm was fascinating to me. For someone who was referred to as a beast, he was very perceptive and aware of his environment at any moment. It made fighting against him nearly impossible.

That was something I respected him and something I was hoping to emulate in my Games. The arena's environment was everything, and I was going to use it to my advantage!

"He's good, but he thinks he knows everything and is genuinely rude to anyone he sees beneath him. He's kinda a horrible person." Julian mumbled in annoyance.

"I hear ya, but I still reckon I can learn a few things from him, y'know?" I responded.

Julian chuckled after I finished talking. I gave him a puzzled look, requesting him to elaborate. Eventually, he finally stopped and decided to explain his amusement. "I'm sorry, I know we talked about this earlier when we met, but your accent really is thick."

My frown developed almost instantaneously. The escort for District Ten, Jewel, already gave me crap about my accent when I met her. I didn't really like having to deal with another person about it.

"Why do ya even care bout it? You're from District Ten as well. Half of the damn population talks like this!" I retaliated with an eye roll.

"Again, I'm sorry. Again, it's just because of how thick your accent in particular is. Most girls your age don't have one as strong as that." He answered, still chuckling.

"Well, I ain't like most girls." I huffed in irritation.

Most of the girls in District Ten that were children of ranch workers acted, in my opinion, prissy. There were exceptions obviously, but most of them weren't willing to get down and do the work their parents and brothers did. It was always something that pissed me off. It just made me work harder in the ranch. They can act however they want and do whatever pleases them. I'd much rather get down-and-dirty with the cows to make money and do my own part for my family.

"I wasn't saying you were. Again, it was just a comment about your accent." Julian stated defensively, still laughing. "I wonder what Logan's accent sounds like."

I shuddered at the mention of my district partner. Logan was not a person that I had known prior to getting reaped and I would have preferred if it stayed that way. The boy was plain creepy. He barely, if ever, talked. The most he would do is grunt or give one or two word answers. Those answers were also nearly impossible to hear as he was so quiet. I was starting to wonder if the boy had a speech impediment or something.

That, however, was not the thing that truly bothered me about Logan. The boy was creepy. He always had this man-eating grin on his face and this evil look in his eyes. Whenever we were in the same room, he would glare at me. I could tell he hated me, but I couldn't really understand why. I had never met him before and I tried to be polite to him when we first met in the train. He simply would glare and, occasionally, drop his grin to give me a terrifying scowl.

The door to the room opened up again, causing me and Julian to turn our heads. Mentally, I cursed. _Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. _

"Good morning Logan. Sleep well?" Julian questioned.

Logan ignored the question as he walked into the room. He had a piece of toast in his hand and seemed to be concentrated on that alone. He simply walked by us, ignoring our existence, and sat down on the couch away from us.

"… and again, the silent treatment. I have no idea what I did to offend him." Julian whispered to me with a frown on his face.

"If ya find out, lemme know." I replied with a similar frown. Logan crept me out, but I was legitimately curious about what made him so mad and angry at us.

A few seconds of silence filled the room until our district escort, Jewel, entered the room. She immediately yawned and stretched in a dramatic fashion, showing off all the jewelry that decorated her clothes. It seemed as if they were all she cared about.

I wonder what came first: her name or her obsession with the stupid stones?

"I'm impressed to see you all up so early. Usually I'm the first one up at these things!" She exclaimed in an excited tone-of-voice. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at her lack of self-awareness. She was always the last one to wake up. "Morning Julian and Maddison. Oh, and morning Logan."

Julian and I waved to her in response. Logan, once again, gave her no response. He simply continued to chew on his toast.

"Well, it is a good thing that we are all up so early. We have a busy, busy day ahead of us! After all, today is the day we are arriving at the Capitol!" She stated again happily. "Ah, it's going to be so good to be back home. I really miss being away from it for too long!"

Again, I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I agreed with her: I missed my home too. However, one of us was away due to her job while the other was going to be put into an arena to fight twenty-three other kids to the death.

"Jewel is right. Today is going to be a busy day for you two." Julian stated sharply. I turned my head to face him and, in my peripheral vision, I noticed Logan turn his head to face our mentor with disinterested eyes. "You both are going to meet up with your stylists and will get dressed for the Tribute Parade. The parade is the next opportunity you have to impress the viewers to earn sponsors, so it's very important to listen to your stylists, be cooperative, and try and stand out as much as possible."

"I don't care." Logan mumbled in response quietly. He proceeded to finish eating his toast and get up from his seat.

I shivered in response to hearing his voice. His silent treatment unnerved me greatly yeah, but it also made me forget how utterly terrifying his voice was. It was so quiet, eerie, and threatening. All I wanted was for him to go back to being quiet in the corner.

Julian was seemingly unfazed by Logan's voice and continued to lecture. "Logan, it is important to listen to this. There are many things that will benefit you and help you get out of the Games."

Logan, again, ignored Julian's words and continued to walk away. He stopped walking, however, when he passed a window. He noticed something and he turned to face it.

"Hmm?" He mumbled in his creepy voice. However, I could detect a little curiosity in it.

The boy stayed still, looking out the window with slightly widened eyes. Curiously, I walked over to another window and looked out. My eyes immediately widened as well and I could feel my mouth drop.

There, outside the window, was the Capitol. It was a giant, shiny city filled with tall steel buildings. There was a certain glow to it that made it shine in the sun compared to the surrounding environment around it.

On first glance, the Capitol was the most beautiful place I had ever seen. However, a little voice in the back of my head was quick to point out to me that, although it was beautiful, it was the most dangerous place I will ever step foot into.

"Marveling at the city, aren't ya? Most of you kids do that when you first see it. It really is something special." Jewel said with a content sigh.

"Ayup, it sure is something special alright…" I mumbled back my response, trying to overcome the nervous feeling that entered my body. I was here for a reason: to fight to the death. It was my job to kill the competition and come back to my family alive, and I was going to do everything I could to achieve that. I couldn't let the sight of some fancy city unnerve me. I was going to enter the Games fearless and was going to leave the Games a victor!

**Logan Faber's POV – District 10 Male**

After a few seconds of genuine curiosity, I walked away from the window and sat down on the couch. I failed to see what Jewel saw so beautiful in the city. The Capitol was no different than District Ten and the other districts. They were all cities built by mankind and were filled with people, living their lives day-by-day with no care for the other people around them.

The Capitol tried so hard to hide that fact. All the people had different colorations of skin and hair that I did not believe were biologically possible. They wore fancy clothes, purchased property and luxuries, and ate foods that a commoner in the Districts could never hope to afford. They covered their city with large buildings and bright lights. The people and the government went to such lengths to hide the fact that they, too, were humans just like the people in the districts. It absolutely disgusted me.

I couldn't wait to one day roam the Capitol and then coat the city's streets with the blood of its people.

I hated people. The human species was the most disgusting, vulgar group of creatures to ever walk the earth. They were selfish beings with no concern for the world around them. The world would be a better place without humans. Therefore, I made it my duty to make sure every human on the planet would one day be exterminated.

I learned this lesson young in my life. When I was twelve, I became fed up with society and decided something needed to be done about the evils of humanity. I proceeded to kill my first victim. It was a very rudimentary murder: the deceased was a neighbor of mine. He was the local butcher of the district and he was ill, so I visited him under the pretense of delivering him food and medication. Once I was inside his house, I found a machete in his kitchen and used it to murder him in the comfort of his home. Immediately after, I burned the body and ran away as if nothing happened. To the people of District Ten, the man simply disappeared.

Now, at seventeen, I had managed to kill forty-four different people. District Ten was on the lookout for a serial killer that had been plaguing them for the past five years. They had no clue that it was me. Not a single person had a hint about what I did, not even my parents. I took drastic measures to ensure that my mission to kill all humans remained a secret.

In the Hunger Games, however, I could be open about what I wanted to do: kill. This is why I entered the Games willingly. I was going to walk away with another twenty-three kills to add to my kill count, and I could hardly hide my excitement!

"We'll be arriving at our stop in about thirty minutes. Once we arrive, things are going to get hectic. We have a lot of things we need to do!" Jewel exclaimed, interrupting my thoughts. She then turned to face me and Maddison. "Do you two have your district tokens? If you leave them on this train, you will not be able to have them in the arena?"

"Uh huh. I'm wearin it." Maddison informed the Capitol lady in her terribly strong accent as she raised her hand. On her wrist was a bracelet made out of cheap rope. It was tied together rather poorly, making me think that it was created by a little kid. A little brother or sister perhaps?

"It's so precious!" Jewel stated as she studied it with a grin on her face.

Jewel was probably the most obnoxious human I had ever met to this point. She always talked with the same excited tone-of-voice about anything and everything. She had no genuine emotions from what I observed – everything about her seemed fake. That was probably the best word to describe her: her personality, the jewels she wore on her attire, and her overall demeanor were all fake. I had to barely contain myself from paying a visit to her in her sleep and slitting her throat with a dinner knife. With all the surveillance on the train, I doubt I could kill her without being caught on film.

For now, she would live. After the Games, however, and after I was more knowledgeable about Capitol security and how to avoid getting caught, she would be my first Capitol victim. I was already looking forward to making her death as slow and painful as I could make it.

"Logan?" My future-victim, again, interrupted my thoughts as she spoke my name. "What's your district token?"

A few seconds passed before I sighed.

"… I don't have one." I answered. I had no need for one. There was nothing in particular that tied me to District Ten. It was a place that I took up residence in: nothing more. Therefore, I didn't see the reason to bring a district token.

"Why don't you have one?" She questioned further.

My mouth twisted into a scowl as I glared at her. I did not enjoy conversation or interacting with other people. I thought I made that fact clear throughout this train ride to everyone, but clearly the idiotic woman from the Capitol did not understand that.

Jewel's eyes widened in surprise and fear before she turned away and started to begin conversation with Maddison. I resisted the urge to chuckle at the sight. _Typical coward._ If people thought my eyes and my scowl were scary, wait until they see me with a weapon…

The remainder of the train ride featured Jewel conversing with Maddison and Julian while I remained in the room sitting down, listening in to their conversation. I couldn't pretend to care much about what they were saying, but I still listened in for any information about my district partner. Maddison was a girl who worked on a ranch and, judging from her build, I could tell that she had a fighting chance in the Games. I was hoping she would be a challenge. I don't want all of my fights in the arena to be too easy. I wanted to take my time and enjoy the fight, then take my time torturing my victims and making sure they were completely broken before I finally ended their lives.

Unfortunately, the conversation did not feature any information that would be useful to know about her. They only talked about tips for the chariot parade and different ways that she could appeal to sponsors. Nothing about the topic was interesting or helpful to me at all.

I never understood the appeal or need for sponsorships. I did not want anyone's help in the arena. I wanted my hunts to be personal – it would just be me as the hunter and any tribute I found as the target. Foreign help, whether it be weaponry, food, or medicine, violated this desire of mine.

I didn't give a fuck about any Capitol sponsorships. Hell, I'll do everything I can to make sure I don't get any sponsors. No damn Capitol civilian with some extra money to spend will be helping me get out of the Games!

Thirty minutes had passed by rather slowly. Once the time had passed, I could feel the train starting to slow down. Soon, it came to a complete stop. We had arrived at our destination.

"Alright, it looks like it is time!" Jewel declared dramatically as she walked forward. She ran her hand through her hair before speaking. "Are you all ready?"

"Yes ma'am." Maddison piped up in a voice that contained both determination and fear.

Heh, I hope she's not scared yet. This experience was going to get much, much worse for her if she was.

"Before you all go out, I have one more piece of advice to give you." Julian started to speak. I figured it was probably more useless information about 'standing out' in the tribute parade, but I still turned to face him in the case it was something actually interesting. "You are both going to be escorted to the main building and led to the room where you will meet your prep team and your stylist. Along the way, there will probably be Capitol journalists and paparazzi. They will try and ask you questions and figure out who you are. You don't actually have to answer the questions, but don't treat them in a way that makes them think negatively of you. Believe me, bad publicity can kill a tribute's chances of getting out of the Games."

"Gotcha." Maddison replied almost immediately.

I rolled my eyes in response, giving no other reply to his useless advice.

Julian noticed my reaction and sighed. "Logan… please, take some of my advice. I'm just trying to get you out of the Games alive."

Immediately, I rushed forward at the man. I pinned him against the wall with my left elbow against his neck. My right hand was inches away from his face.

"AHH!" Jewel shrieked right after. "Logan!"

I paid no attention to the woman, or Maddison. Instead, I focused all of my attention on Julian. He was in his early fifties and was clearly out of shape compared to the sixteen year old boy that won his Hunger Games. Right now, his eyes were wide with surprise and, to a lesser extent, fear.

If this man was an example for a standard victor of the Hunger Games, then there wasn't a single chance I would lose this year.

"I don't need your help. I don't need anyone's help. I will kill everyone else on my own. Now stay out of my way." I hissed into his face.

After my declaration, I released him. The man immediately fell to the ground and released a breath that I doubt he realized he was holding in. Pathetic. I almost wanted to end his life at that moment, but I realized that it wasn't opportune moment. Besides my concern about Capitol security and surveillance, I needed to meet my prep team, after all.

"… You're fucked up." Maddison spoke up.

I turned my attention towards my district partner. She was staring at me with wide eyes that were indeed filled with fear. However, I noticed that there was also a trace of anger. She slowly began to relax and started to glare at me.

"Julian's just tryin' to get us outta here. I don't give a damn if ya don't agree with his advice, but nothin he did deserved that treatment. Don't try and do that shit in front of me again." She stated in a cold voice.

… _is… she threatening me?_

I couldn't resist the urge to laugh. My laugh sounded throughout the train, echoing slightly. I noticed Jewel's eyes widened further in shock. It almost looked as if the Capitol woman was going to have an anxiety attack.

Maddison attempted to hide her fear, but I could see the traces of it returning in her eyes. If she was actually scared of me, then she would die by my hand. No one could hope to stand against me if they were even remotely afraid of me.

Unlike Jewel and Julian, Maddison was somebody I could kill. I could murder her in the arena in any fashion, however I liked, with no repercussions whatsoever. I wouldn't have to make any arrangements to hide the evidence of the murder.

"I'd watch who you threaten, Maddison. You may find yourself regretting it." I stated in between my laughter.

At that moment, the door to the train opened up and the peacekeepers came into the room. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. _Convenient timing._ I was, for the first time, beginning to enjoy a conversation with someone else…

"Maddison Holland, Logan Faber, your prep team is waiting for you two. Follow us." One of the peacekeepers stated sharply.

Maddison nodded immediately and rushed over to them. I followed right behind with a smirk on my face.

I could tell she was a tough girl, and I had already gotten under her skin. I could already imagine what I could do the other tributes. _And all of this was before the Games even started…_

While Maddison and I were escorted out of the train, we were bombarded with Capitol men and women asking us personal questions. I didn't pay attention to a single one of them. My mind was focused on only one thing: the Hunger Games. I could hardly wait to begin my hunt and see how many tributes I could break.

* * *

**District 3**

**Kaylee Harper's POV – District 3 Female **

… _I have never been so humiliated in all of my life!_

After the peacekeepers escorted me and Ethan, my nerdy district partner, to our prep teams, I was stripped. They forced me to remove all of my clothes and I was required to sit down on a table fully naked while I waited for them to come back to the room after they finish their preparations to 'beautify' me.

I never considered myself self-cautious and I was certainly no prude, but I felt extremely uncomfortable being completely nude in front of a group of Capitol strangers that I had only just met. All I knew about them was their names: the two women on my team were named Ichi and Ni and the only man was named San.

A few minutes passed before my three stylists came up to me, each of them having grins on their faces.

"Sorry for the wait dearie. We had to ask the head stylist a few questions about his plans." Ichi apologized. "However, we know all about your outfit and, frankly, you're going to look gorgeous!"

"… what does it look like?" I questioned, bracing myself for the worst possible situation. District Three tributes usually were dressed similar to computers to represent the technology from our district. I seriously hoped the stylist was willing to experiment a little and try something new. Something told me that potential sponsors would not support a young woman that was wearing broken computer parts.

"You'll just have to wait and see. No spoilers!" She replied teasingly.

"Then what was the point of telling me something like that if you're going to make me wait for the information? I think I have a right to be informed about what the hell I'll be wearing in a little bit, considering I'm going to have to rely on it to get my damn sponsors!" I shouted back in response.

The eyes of my prep team members widened in surprise at my voice.

"Well, um, it was j-just because your stylist wanted to show it to you in person…" Ichi whimpered her answer. From the way she was reacting, I could tell that she was a woman who did not handle confrontation and well.

Perhaps I could have rephrased my thought to be a little more polite and less aggressive. However, I always considered me someone who was brutally honest. I would say my thoughts exactly how I thought them. It was how I have acted for the past eighteen years, and I wasn't going to change myself now. If I offended her or somebody else, then so be it.

My eyes turned away from her and looked at the other stylists in my prep team. I noticed that San was staring at me intently. Immediately, I felt myself becoming flushed with embarrassment.

"Take a picture. It'll last longer." I hissed at him. "Just stop gawking at my body dammit!"

"Hmm?" My comment seemed to snap San out of his thoughts. He then quickly held out his hands defensively. "I wasn't gawking! I'm sorry if it appeared that way. I was just studying you and trying to figure out how much work I was going to need to do."

"Sure you were." I rolled my eyes in response.

The man frowned in response. "No, I'm being serious. I'm not some pervert! I was just studying to see what needs to be done. We're going to have to do a lot of work. I can see potential in you to be beautiful, but your skin looks a little grimy and hardened. We're going to have to get work done on you now!"

"Grimy? Hardened?" I repeated the words with a frown on my face.

Those were words I wouldn't consider myself. I would've always considered myself 'average'. I looked like most women in the district my age. I worked in a department of the district that dealt with safety and health conditions in the various factories in District Three, and all the women my age looked exactly like me.

"Mhmm." Ni nodded for the group. "We don't have much time to waste, so let's get this thing started now!"

With those words, they moved the table further into the room. Everything else afterward seemed like a blur to me. They bathed me and scrubbed my skin really hard to remove any calluses and smudges in my skin. They were doing their all to make sure I didn't look 'grimy'. After the bathing, they then started to work on my hair and nails at the same time.

During the course of the process, Ichi, Ni, and San were all chatting away amicably about the latest news in the Capitol. They were talking about rumors of some Capitol celebrities to discussing the personal lives of President Draven. I didn't pay too much attention to the things they were saying exactly. I did not like people who were nosy and gossiped. Therefore, I remained quiet and spent my time thinking to myself about this nightmare scenario I was put in.

It was ironic that I was reaped into the Hunger Games during the last possible year. It was as if fate or some unknown god decided that it wanted another horrible thing to happen to me.

There was a trend in my life that once something good started to happen to me, something would happen to ruin it. I supposed life was normal for a poor district family growing up until I turned eight. That was when my brother died in a fire-related accident at the factory he was working in. I became so depressed that I turned to other substances to help me grieve: I started morphling and drinking at the very young age of nine.

Both substances comforted me and helped me feel better, but then my parents got upset with my behavior and attitude. That only encouraged me to continue my actions. I started to rebel against them on purpose. My relationship with my parents started to collapse and, after a very heated argument, they kicked me out of the house and forced me to find my own residence. Eventually, I was able to find my own place and earn my job. I managed to repair the relationship with my parents and I even met the man who I thought was the love of my life – my husband Renton.

We married at fifteen, something that wasn't completely uncommon in the districts. Still, my parents disapproved and my relationship with them was shattered once again. At the moment, I didn't care. I was blinded by love for my husband. However, that love began to fade over time. Renton and I started to fight more. He became less of a lover with each passing day and more like a roommate. It was depressing to me. A part of me wanted to leave him and get a divorce, but I realized that he was the one who made most of the money in the household. I simply could not leave him and be financially stable. I was trapped in a forced life due to my blind love as a fifteen year old.

My life started to get better recently when I met a man at my job, Harper. We became quick friends after he made a joke about my last name being his first name. Over time, our friendship developed further. I felt the guy truly understood me, and that was something I had been missing in my life. It did not take long before our affair started. It was mostly a physical relationship, but I couldn't deny the connection we had.

Things were starting to fall into a routine for me. Naturally, now was the time for me to get reaped into the Hunger Games.

Perhaps it was a good thing that I was put into the Hunger Games. My life, overall, has been pretty miserable. Maybe I'll die in the Hunger Games and I'll be finally put of my misery. I wasn't going to try and commit suicide in the Games. I was going to try and win, but I did realize the possible benefits if I were to die…

"Darling, are you okay?" San questioned me, breaking me away from my self-pitying thoughts. I noticed that the man currently had his hands right by my head, trying to braid quickly. "You seem a little tense right now."

"Don't call me tense!" I hissed. "But to answer your question, I'm just thinking of a few things. Maybe that's making me seem tense."

"What are you thinking about?" Ni questioned. She had just finished my fingernails and was now working on my toenails.

"A man maybe?" Ichi offered with a smile as she started to wax my body. "That's all I would be thinking about ten years ago when I was your age!"

"Fuck off. My thoughts are none of your business!" I shouted in response.

Ichi, unlike previously, was not fazed by my confrontation. Instead, her smile developed into a grin.

"It's something juicy, isn't it? Maybe more than one man? Two men? Three?" She continued to question.

"My, my! Our little tribute is quite the promiscuous little thing." San noted teasingly.

"I'll repeat myself: go fuck off." I shouted again, this time louder.

The three stylists didn't seem to pay attention to my words. They continued to talk to each other about how they imagined my sex life. _Nosy people._ I was starting to really dislike these three even more. They just couldn't let me have my privacy.

The topic was already uncomfortable because they did end up discussing a major concern for me. I was still very conflicted about the situation back home between Renton and Harper. Renton was my husband and I really did love him when we got married. The years since our marriage made me forget this, as we started to fight nearly every day. Sometimes they would just be verbal spars and other days we would actually be physically hitting each other. I'd slap him, he would hit me just as hard, and I'd then punch him even harder.

Over time, I had forgotten there was even anything positive about the man. It took me getting reaped and having him come visit me in the Justice Building to see a sign of the man I had fallen in love with. After our visit, I felt connected to him for the first time in three years!

On the other side, there was Harper. We had genuine connection since the moment we met and I found myself becoming more and more attracted to him. He, too, came to visit me in the Justice Building where he confessed that he loved me. No one, not even Renton in the early years of our relationship, had ever said that to me.

Those two men confused the hell out of me. I didn't know what I felt about them and what I was supposed to think. They both loved me, and I honestly felt that I loved them both. However, I did not like the idea of having two men in my life that I loved like that. It was easier to have sex with Harper when we only had a physical relationship and I had no emotional connection to Renton. Now, I felt guilt and confusion.

I needed resolution. I needed to do something about the mess I got myself in between the two and I wasn't able to do anything for as long as I was in the damn Capitol!

"Well, I think we just finished our work." Ni declared happily. "Why don't you tell us what you think?"

I pushed the thoughts of Renton and Harper out of my head as I stood up and looked at myself in a mirror. My eyes widened at the sight. My body was, indeed, removed any of the features that they considered hardened. My dark black hair was braided. Any excess hair on my body was completely removed. My fingernails were done and colored black.

I didn't look like myself at all.

"We did good, didn't we?" San commented smugly.

"… Last I heard, you weren't the judges. The head stylist, and the sponsors, are the ones who will decide if I'm good enough or not. So don't get too full of yourself yet." I exclaimed to him.

San's face, as did the faces of the other two stylists, immediately dropped. I could tell that I deeply offended them and hurt their feelings. I didn't care though. I didn't like them, so why should I care about how they feel?

"W-Well, tell us what the head stylist thinks when you meet with him. He should be here in about ten minutes… we just need to let him know we finished." Ni responded after a few seconds of silence.

I nodded. "Then go tell him or something!"

The three stylists in my prep team immediately left the room to go report to him. That left me alone with my reflection in the mirror and my thoughts.

As unnatural as I looked, I did realize that I was probably beautiful according to the standards of the Capitol. If this got me sponsors, then so be it. Any help I could get to get out of the arena was needed!

From years of watching the Hunger Games, I've noticed that the tributes that die are the ones who try to remain true to themselves once they get in the arena. They considered themselves too gentle. Killing would be impossible for them. I wouldn't be like them. I have gotten into a few street fights in my life and I knew that I was physically strong. I had no qualms acting brutal and I was going to do just that. If it meant me returning home, then I would do anything: even if meant killing a few kids younger and more innocent than me.

I had a lot of issues back home in District Three. There were still issues in my family that I needed to resolve. There was also my situation with Renton and Harper. I needed to be back home and fix them myself. I needed to get back home and try and repair the shitty life I had. I was going to make sure that happened.

**Ethan Neurus's POV – District 3 Male**

When the prep team finished their work with me, they quickly left the room to inform my stylist. I was left alone, not that it changed the overall atmosphere of the room. The three preparatory stylists did not communicate with me much and I made no attempts to talk to them except to answer any questions they had for me. I just remained completely nude and alone on the table, waiting anxiously for my stylist to arrive so I could converse with her.

I was very excited to get this out of the way and get on the chariots for the tribute parade. From what I have observed, the chariots seemed to become more complex and technological in their design as the years passed. I was very interested in the idea of seeing one up-close in person and seeing if I could understand how they were made.

Unfortunately, that was the only thing about the Hunger Games that I could say I was truly interested in. The training was going to be deplorable, the interview at the end of the training would be, at best, awkward and in terms of the actual Games, I was going to be lucky if I survived past the bloodbath. District Three tributes, in particular the male tributes, did not usually stand a chance in the Hunger Games and I was, unfortunately, more generic compared to previous tributes.

It said something about your chances when your parents, when they came to visit you in the Justice Building, knew that you had no chance of survival.

A few minutes passed before the door to the room I was in opened up. A woman with white skin and a skin tone that looked purple. There was a horn sticking out of her head and she looked completely unnatural and inhuman.

The plastic surgery in the Capitol seemed to have developed at an alarming rate. I was nervous to see what other types of people looked like here.

"You're Ethan, correct?" She spoke up in a gentle voice. I nodded in response, which caused her to smile at me. "My name is Soraka, and I am going to be your stylist during this whole experience. How are you doing?"

I was surprised at the sincerity in her voice. For someone who looked like a complete product of the atypical society she was from, she seemed like a nice woman. Perhaps it was too quick to judge, but I liked to assume that I had a decent read on other people. I felt more comfortable around her and decided I could probably speak my mind.

"To be frank, I'm not feeling up to par. I'm rather uncomfortable in my nude state. Would it be feasible to acquire any clothing?" I asked her politely.

The woman blinked in response, probably confused by 'word choice'. I had been told that I 'talked funny' from the peers my age at my job. I never fully understood that criticism. What was unusual about the way I talked?

"You… you want me to get you clothes?" She asked. I nodded in affirmation. That was what I had said. "Hold on one second."

Soraka walked over to a small closet and pulled out a blue bathrobe and handed it to me. I quickly put it on. It fit perfectly! It was seemingly designed for a boy my age with unusually tall height. I had a feeling that my prep team stylists were supposed to give this to me while I waited for my stylist.

"Better?" She asked politely.

"Much. I appreciate it." I answered with a smile.

Soraka's gentle smile appeared on her face again as she started to speak. "I'm glad. Anyway, I am supposed to go over your outfit for the reaping ceremony, but I can show that to you in a little bit. First, I wanted you to tell me a little about yourself."

I looked at the woman in front of me in confusion. "Excuse me?"

"You don't have to tell me much. Just whatever you feel comfortable talking about." She explained a little uneasily, running one of her hands through her white hair nervously.

"… You want to know about me?" I repeated her question in confusion.

The idea sounded so foreign to me. Not many people in District Three talked to me. I would often make attempts to communicate with kids my age and my co-workers at the factory, but I wouldn't get any success. I was considered nerdy even for the standards of District Three. No one really tried to get to know me. Even my district partner, Kaylee, seemed to ignore me on the train. The idea of someone from the Capitol of all places trying to get to know seemed so strange.

"Of course. This is actually my first year working as a stylist. We're going to be working with each other for a while, so I felt it would be best if we knew each other." She answered, the smile on her face growing even wider. "Besides, you seem like an interesting kid. I'm sure you have an interesting story to tell."

"Not really." I answered with a sigh. "I don't have much to say. My father became crippled two years ago after an incident at his work I guess, but that's not too unorthodox in the districts."

"He's crippled? That's horrible!" She exclaimed, her smile turning downwards into a frown.

"Not really. It really isn't too uncommon." I informed with a shrug, brushing off her pity. I wasn't the first kid to have a crippled parent and I certainly wasn't going to be the last.

It seemed as if you were a child in the districts, you had some variation of a sob story. Maybe your parents were deceased. Maybe you had to be the sole provider for your family due to whatever unfortunate circumstances occurred. Maybe you were shunned by family or the other people in the districts for an inconsequential difference in your character or your upbringing. It didn't really matter. It just seemed that life for district children was, in general, horrible.

"Well, what about your mother? Any siblings?" Soraka questioned.

"I am an only child. Also, I'd strongly prefer if we switched to a different topic of conversation." I answered immediately in a slightly cold tone. I did not enjoy my mother and she did not enjoy me. She was the last thing I wanted to have on my mind while I am here. I was already going into the Hunger Games on a death sentence. I didn't need another reason to be upset.

Soraka frowned again, but nodded in understanding. "Well, what do you back home? Do you work anywhere?"

"I do. I am employed in a factory that focuses on robotics. I work directly on the production line." I answered with pride evident in my voice.

Children as young as ten could get employed in the factories to work. They usually were responsible for menial tasks for the management and, at best, working in quality control. Actual production was done by adults: people with knowledge on the subject of robots and machinery. No children worked in actual production, with only one exception: me. I worked side-by-side with the adults on actual robot production.

Machinery fascinated me. I enjoyed studying the design of different products. Working in the factory was probably the most enjoyable experience of my day. I didn't feel worthless or odd at my position on the production line. I felt powerful whenever I had my hands on metal and I felt pride whenever I finished any product.

"Really?" Soraka's eyes widen in surprise. She seemed genuinely interested.

"Yes. I could inform you a little more of the specifics if you desire to know more." I told her.

My stylist nodded and I proceeded to let her know about how the factory works and a few of the products that I had been working on in my last few days at the factory. I paid close attention to her throughout the conversation, looking for any sign that I was boring her. She seemed to be entertained the whole time, much to my relief.

I could not remember having a conversation like this with anyone in my entire life. Most people simply ignored me whenever I tried to talk to them about my passions. Soraka was different. She actually listened to me.

It was actually fun to talk to her.

The conversation, however, was unfortunately not going to last forever. A few minutes passed before we had to continue with what were supposed to do and finish the final preparations for the tribute parade. Soraka stood up and gestured for me to follow her. She led me to a closet in the room that had a lock on the doors. She quickly entered in the code and opened it. I looked inside the closet doors and I openly gaped.

Inside the closet was a suit of pure metal. Each section looked something straight out of the production line I worked on. The suit was also accompanied with a helmet that covered the head well. If someone were to wear a suit like that in the arena, they would surely be safe from any potential attacks.

"I'm glad you work in robotics and seemed interested in the subject, because I, along with the other District Three stylist, decided to base your costume off of it. We designed a suit of pure metal to resemble a robot. That is one of the biggest recent developments from your district after all" She informed me with a wide smile. "What do you think? We had to consult with a few scientists and District Three victors that worked in the factories to make sure we designed it appropriately."

A wide grin developed on my face as I studied it. "The design behind the mechanics of the suit are ingenious! You have already surpassed any of my hopes for a suitable costume."

Soraka giggled in response. "I'm glad you like it so much. I hope you would! I'll give you some time to put it on. Just remember that the parade should be starting soon, so don't dawdle for too long!"

The stylist left the room, leaving me alone so I could put on the suit. I quickly took off the bathrobe and started to put on the suit, piece by piece.

All parts of the suit fit me perfectly. It was comfortable and easy to walk in, but I could tell that it would protect me from attacks. The material was made of pure metal and it was very durable.

I rushed over to the mirror and stared at my reflection. Wearing the suit of armor, I felt more confident than I had ever in my life. At the moment, I wasn't worried about potentially dying. I did not feel worthless, but rather, I felt powerful. I felt capable.

I felt invulnerable.

_I needed to design a suit like this for the actual Hunger Games!_

Immediately, I began to study the material of the suit. There was most likely going to be some form of metal in the cornucopia of the arena. Maybe the arena itself would have suitable resources. If there wasn't any available that I could safely obtain, I could probably hope to get a few sponsorships to supply me materials. No matter the case, I needed to design this suit for the arena or something similar. Metal-working and robotics were my passion in my life and, in my mind right now, they seemed like my one shot to get out of the arena alive.

* * *

**Author's Note:** And here is the next chapter everybody!

Now, I have finished the points-of-view of sixteen of the tributes. Just two more chapters you will have gotten to know them all. This is going to go by so fast for me! And hopefully for you all too :P

So yeah, what do you all think of these four? Maddison? Logan? Kaylee? Ethan? I'm interested to know! :)

Thank you all so much for the great reviews! I really appreciate all of you and everything you have all said!

Next chapter will begin right away. Off to work on the Chariot Rides/Tribute Parade. I'll see you all when I finish the chapter! :)


	7. The Chariots: Deceit and Sincerity

**District 2**

**Lepolio Huang's POV – District 2 Male**

After getting dressed in my peacekeeper uniform costume for the tribute parade, I was escorted out of the building towards the large, stadium-like room with the chariots. The tribute parade was going to occur in thirty minutes, so all twenty-four tributes must be ready and prepared for the festivities.

I never understood what the appeal of the tribute parade was. It was supposed to be some sign of unity and district pride for everyone viewing, but I don't recall ever watching one and thinking anything other than indifference. No one would remember what the tributes looked like in their costumes. They would only remember who wins and who would die once the fighting started in the arena. Then again, maybe there was some appeal that I did not understand. Maybe the other people in the districts watched the parade and felt some variation of pride. I didn't really know. I was told that I didn't understand complex emotions like that very easily.

According to my parents before they died, back when I was a newborn infant, my umbilical cord was wrapped around my neck multiple times and cut off my flow of oxygen mere seconds after birth. It was considered a miracle that I survived considering how long I went without breathing. However, I learned that as a result of this, I developed some variation of brain damage and that my ability to register pain and the ability to process emotions were damaged severely. I still felt emotions, but according to the doctors, I felt very loose versions of the ones the average person felt. Perhaps this 'district pride' was just another thing on a long list of feelings that I was unable of comprehending.

However, it was not like I needed to understand it. All that really mattered right now was to stand out to get sponsors, enter the Games after training, and then slaughter the rest of the tributes and return back home to my family. Unlike most tributes from District Two, I was reaped. I had no intentions of volunteering for the Games. I was very content with my life. I had a wife, a girl named Kianna, and my two year-old twins, a boy named Miall and a girl named Lilicon. I didn't appreciate being taken away from them, so I was going to do everything to return back to them.

With that thought in my mind, I climbed onto the chariot and waited for the tribute parade to start.

A minute passed before I saw a few more tributes come out from other districts. I saw the boy from District Seven walk out wearing a tree costume, looking very irritated about his costume. I saw the girl from District Ten feeling very comfortable in her cattle rancher costume. I saw a few other tributes, but most of them did not concern me. The girl from District Five, the boy from District Three, and the two tributes from Districts Eight and Eleven: they all seemed like bloodbath deaths to me. There was no need to focus on them.

Eventually, one of the tributes that walked out was my district partner, Victoire McBlock. She was heading towards our chariot with a large smile on her face.

While the both of us were in costumes that represented the peacekeeper force, Victoire was wearing one that was significantly more revealing. It suited her body's natural curves and her muscles well. She was also, unlike me, wearing no helmet. This allowed her black, straight hair to fall down past her upper back.

Perhaps a normal man would feel some variation of attraction towards her, but I was already married. With that in my mind, I looked at her and saw nothing but an ally early in the Games in the career pack and a potential threat in the Games once the careers split apart.

"Hey! Lepolio! How are you doing?" She called out to me cheerfully after reaching the chariot. She jumped on the chariot and turned to face me.

"Alright. I want to get this over with already however." I answered honestly.

"Ugh, I hear you. I'm pretty nervous about this. But this is how things work. This is tradition after all. Who are we to question it?" She responded with a shrug. "Hopefully it won't be too bad though. It might actually be a little fun to just ride around on the chariots. Maybe we'll actually enjoy it!"

If there was one thing I learned about Victoire in our short time together, it was that she seemed happy nearly every second of the day. She was a very friendly, funny, polite girl who charmed our district escort and our mentors within seconds of meeting them. I could tell she was not putting on an act at all and that she was being sincere. As pleasant as it made her, I was very concerned about the amount of sponsorships she would probably receive after her interview before the Games started.

"Heh, maybe." I answered with a light chuckle, trying to appear amicable. Growing up, I used to watch other kids interact with each other and I picked up on how they talked to each other. I may not feel emotions strongly, but I tried to talk and act in a way that made people think I had those capabilities. People tended to work with others who they had a good relationship with, and it was difficult for other people to make a relationship with someone who was considered emotionless.

Victoire giggled in agreement. She opened her mouth to say something, but then she turned her head. Something appeared in her peripheral vision. I turned my head and saw the District One boy approaching us. He was a boy slightly shorter and smaller than most of the careers from his district, but he still walked forward us with the same arrogance that the boys from District One had. He was wearing a costume made entirely out of gold to represent the luxury goods his district produced. It was also skintight and revealed his body, which I could assume would be attractive to anyone interested.

"Hello District Two tributes. Nice to finally get a chance to meet you both." He spoke to us with a wide smile on his face.

I knew his smile was fake the second I saw it. As adept as I was at faking my own emotions, I knew the signs of someone else faking their own emotions. His cordial smile and demeanor were entirely fake and were masking some more complex emotion.

"District One." I called him in acknowledgment.

"Call me Ariail. In case you weren't paying attention during the reaping preview on the train, that is my name." He informed us smugly.

"Well, nice to meet you Ariail! I'm Victoire and this is Lepolio." Victoire introduced ourselves.

"Yes, I remembered both of your names. I remembered how you, Victoire, rushed up to the front of the stage with a smile on your face. You seemed legitimately excited to volunteer for the Games." Ariail commented. Victoire opened her mouth to respond, but then he turned to face me. "And I remember how you were reaped, Lepolio. As big as you are, you are no volunteer. Looking at you on the tape and looking at you now, I wonder just how strong of a competitor you really are. I mean, how tough can a reaped tribute actually be?"

I made a conscious effort to frown after hearing the insult. Ariail appeared to be an overly condescending person. I still could not read any other hint of emotions under his fake demeanor. It was something I was starting to dislike and I wanted him to leave.

"Are you here to talk to us about something in particular, or are you just wasting our time?" I questioned in irritation. I assumed it was an appropriate emotional response to get Ariail to leave if he had no purpose conversing with me.

Instantly, the fake smile dropped and a scowl developed on the boy's face. It seemed much more natural on his face. I would assume he didn't enjoy being talked back to in any fashion.

"Careers." He said the word with a hiss. "I've already talked to the District Four tributes and I'm making sure with you two. There are too many reaped 'careers', so I need to make sure if you all are going to work with us! I'm assuming you are in Victoire. Are you in Lepolio?"

There was an intensity and hostility in his voice that I did not understand. It seemed a lot stronger than the standard anger or temper I had seen in other people. He was something I didn't understand, and I did not like not knowing the variables I was working with.

"I'm in. There is no reason to worry about me not joining." I answered, making my voice colder than usual.

"Hmph. Good." He grumbled as he immediately turned away and started to walk off. "We'll talk more during the training days. Just remember this Lepolio: you didn't volunteer. You aren't here for the same reason we are here. You don't have our determination nor our strength. You better not hold us back in the arena."

With those words, the District One boy walked off towards his chariot to meet up with his district partner. He was most likely going to relay news to her that the careers were intact despite the multiple reaped tributes.

Ariail was correct: I did not volunteer and I was not here for the same reason. He and other career volunteers came to the Games to earn fame and money. They were here for their pride, a concept I could barely understand. On the other hand, I was taken away from Kianna and our children.

I had met my wife when we were fourteen. She was an intellect who studied psychology and took an interest in me, which soon developed into love. When my family died in a house fire when I was fifteen, she was who I turned for to properly mourn. Soon, she was pregnant and gave birth to our twins. We married shortly after and spent all of our time together. I had no intentions of leaving her. She was my rock.

Kianna and our children were the only people I felt true, genuine feelings for. I wasn't completely certain what exact emotion I felt, but I could assume it was love. Nevertheless, I cared for them and needed them in my life. They were everything to me. I was not going to let myself get separated from them.

I may have not been a volunteer, but I was trained and I was going to win. I would crush the skulls of anyone that got in my way.

"What's his problem?" Victoire commented with a sigh, interrupting my thoughts. I could tell she was still bothered by our brief interaction with Ariail. "We're all careers and he should know that. There was no reason to antagonize you like that."

"I don't pretend to understand him." I replied with a shrug. "We'll worry about him later though. For now, he's an ally. There's no reason to try and go against him right away."

"True, true." She nodded in agreement. She then let out another sigh. "Let's just focus on this little parade of ours. I'm still kinda nervous actually… Hopefully I don't embarrass myself in front of my family on live television!"

"You'll do fine." I told her. I did not want her to feel nervous: it could potentially ruin my chances for sponsors if even one part of District Two looked weak.

"Hopefully. We'll see in a little bit I guess." She commented as she ran her hand through her hair. "What about you? I know you said you wanted to get this out of the way a little bit ago. You nervous about this?"

"I just want to get this out of way so I can get to sleep. I don't particularly care about embarrassing myself." I answered, forcing out a believable laugh.

"That's probably the attitude to have for this thing." Victoire noted with a giggle. "I really probably should act like you for now. I don't seem very career-like right now, do I?"

"Not really." I shook my head.

To be completely honest, we seemed like a strange pair of tributes for a career district. Sure I was physically intimidating, but I was not a volunteer. Victoire, despite being a volunteer, didn't seem to have the personality suited to being a career. We made a weird pair. In the end, though, any initial opinions on us didn't matter. I'll prove myself as a career tribute with a high training score and Victoire, most likely, will show off with an equally high score. Our only really task was making sure we stood out more than the other career tributes.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." She nodded her head in understanding. "I'll have to fix that before we go out."

"Again, don't stress yourself out. You'll do fine." I stated, repeating what I told her earlier.

"You're right, you're right." She giggled slightly. "You're really sweet Lepolio. I'm a little envious of your wife. I wish I had a boyfriend who was as polite as you."

I forced out another amicable life, accepting her compliment. I could tell Victoire was starting to view me as a friend. She probably assumed I felt similarly to her. However, I felt nothing for the girl. I didn't dislike her, but all I saw when I looked at her was competition. Eventually she was going to have to die. I'd be friendly and polite to her at the moment, but there was no reason for me to want to be friends with someone that I was most likely going to have to kill.

We remained silent for a few seconds until we noticed a few Capitol animal trainers coming into the room, leading horses. They connected the horses to our chariots. Once all the chariots were attached to the horses, a large door in the center of the room opened up.

"Looks like it's time. Good luck!" Victoire said to me, giving me a thumbs up gesture.

"You too." I replied, mimicking her gesture.

Immediately the chariot started to move and the loud, booming voice of President Verich Draven could be heard throughout the area.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is now time for the tribute parade for the one hundred fiftieth Hunger Games." He proclaimed. "Here are your tributes for the Sixth Quarter Quell! May the odds be in their favor!"

**Victoire McBlock's POV – District 2 Female**

After President Draven introduced us, the Capitol audience let out a deafening applause that took me by surprise. I had to make a conscious effort to bottle down my nerves. This wasn't the time to be nervous at all. It was time to stand out to the crowds of people and make sponsors! Besides, I wouldn't want to embarrass my family and the people of District Two after all?

I knew my family would be watching and they, most likely, were throwing a party to celebrate the Hunger Games like they do each year. My parents would invite all their co-workers and my siblings would bring over all of their friends from school and training. Considering that I had five other siblings, I had to assume that there would be many people watching, rooting for me back home. I had to impress them all! I was here to make them, and all the other people of District Two, proud.

The chariot in front of us marched out the door towards the central room. Both District One tributes were clad in skintight clothes made entirely of gold. They waved to the crowd of Capitol citizens, wearing very cocky grins on their faces. Immediately, I heard the crowd starting to cheer louder. District One was always a fan-favorite of the Capitol after all.

A few seconds had passed as our chariot was now going through the door. I gave a glance over to Lepolio before I turned my head forward and took a deep breath in. _Be the career tribute you trained to be. _

When we passed through the door, we entered a larger stadium-like room. Unlike the previous room, this one was filled with bright lights and the seats were completely filled with Capitol citizens. All of them seemed to cheer even louder the second we arrived.

"District Two! District Two!" I heard members of the audience chanting loudly.

Upon hearing their support, I let a grin develop on my face as I raised my hand to wave to everyone. I tried to find a comfortable balance between friendly and confident. I didn't want to come as too friendly, or I might be perceived as weak. At the same time, I didn't want to appear overconfident, as that was definitely a turn-off in tributes!

Judging by the applause seeming to increase in noise, I assumed that I had reached that balance.

It did feel exhilarating to be here. The Hunger Games were everything to the people of District Two. We were the district that produced the most victors for a reason! Our people lived and breathed for the Games similar to the Capitol citizens. To be standing here on the chariots was an honor that I was proud to have.

I was not like most tributes from my district in the sense that I was some bloodthirsty killing machine. The overly gory deaths were probably my least favorite part about the Hunger Games! I had always told myself that once I entered the Games, I would make my kills as quick, painless, and bloodless as I could. However, like my bloodthirsty peers, I had trained for this all my life and it was my dream to be a victor.

I had many plans for the money and the status. My family wasn't poor at all, but I had a large family. Therefore, my parents had to spend more than normal to take care of me and my other five siblings. Even if my oldest brother, Trent, left and lived on his own, they still had to take care of the rest of us! We cost them a lot of money, so now it was my time to pay them back. I needed to earn the money and help make finances easier for them! And after that, I had a few more intentions to use leftover money for. Starting up my own yoga institute and making sure I had money to buy nice gifts for my friends and family were high priorities on my list of plans.

The longer I stood on the chariot, the more comfortable and excited I was feeling. I was so close to making my dream come true. It all felt so surreal to me!

I turned my head to my left and looked at Lepolio. The boy was waving to everyone with a smile on his face. The peacekeeper uniform on him wasn't loose at all, but it did little to cover the muscles that he had. He was completely ripped! He was definitely earning a lot of support from the Capitol women and anyone who valued strength. I assumed that he would be bringing in many sponsorship gifts for the career pack this year.

He was a very kind, polite guy and he was going to be a dependable ally for the first half of the Games. I was slightly anxious to meet him on first glance but after getting to know him, I was glad to have him as my district partner.

I realized that, in the back of my head, that there was a strong chance that I was going to have to personally kill him to win the Games but I pushed that thought away. I would concern myself later once I was in the arena. There was even a chance that someone else would do the deed instead of me! For now, I was just going to look at him and think of him as my ally.

A few more seconds before the bright lights started to focus in on a different chariot. The attention moved on to the next set of tributes. With the attention off of us for a second, I turned to face my partner.

"We did good Lepolio." I told him happily.

"What did I tell you? You were fine." He stated, reminding me about the brief bout of nerves I had before the parade started.

I giggled in response. "Yeah, yeah, you were right. Don't rub it in my face too much please!"

"I wouldn't dream about it." He replied with a light chuckle.

After our little conversation, my eyes wandered to a giant screen in the center of the stadium, showing off the tributes on camera for everybody to see. Currently, the District Three tributes were on the screen. My eyes widened at the sight.

District Three was usually dressed in random computer wires and assorted mechanical parts that never flattered them. This year, however, they were dressed to resemble robots. Both the girl and boy were wearing suits made of pure metal with matching helmets.

The District Three girl stood out the most between the two. She made a few attempts to wave, but she seemed to exhibit more of a tough-girl attitude. The robotic suit really helped make her more memorable.

Even the District Three boy a boy who I had assumed would not last long in the Games, appeared to stand out. He appeared rather awkward, but the metal suit fit him well and he seemed to carry a certain confidence that was missing in him during the reaping.

With their costumes, they looked like a serious threat. I was already dreading how many sponsors they were going to have.

"Wish our stylists were that good." I mumbled aloud, more to myself than anyone else.

Somehow amidst the loud cheering, Lepolio heard me. He scoffed in response. "It doesn't matter how they look now. They'll be a corpse sometime soon once the Games started: both of them."

"Maybe." I sighed in response. He was most likely right. It was a saddening thought, to be honest. Neither of them, nor most of the tributes, were volunteers and neither of them appeared to be trained. They were just unlucky. It was rather unfair, but there was nothing I could do about that. The deaths in the Hunger Games were a part of life and everyone had to accept that. They were a necessary evil to keep the peace, it seemed.

Honestly, I hoped that I would be the one to kill them. It's not that I wanted to add a lot of kills to my record. I would just try to make their death as quick and painless as possible. In my mind, if a tribute didn't volunteer to this and accepted the risks of being here, then they deserved to have as soft of an end as possible. I doubt some of the other careers, especially that Ariail guy from District One, would give them that luxury.

Soon, the spotlight faded from them and was directed towards the next chariot. On board were the two tributes from District Four. They were dressed up as fishermen, clad in yellow holding fishing rods. The boy from there even had a basket full of fish. He held up the basket proudly and was trying to show off to the Capitol citizens, as if the basket had a human head in it instead. He was cheering loudly and the Capitol was cheering with him.

The District Four girl, too, appeared to be cheering and waving to the Capitol citizens. Unlike her district partner, however, she seemed uncomfortable. It was barely noticeable, but it was apparent in her eyes. At first glance, it looked like she was nervous. However, after a further look, it was much more than that. She seemed very upset up on the chariot in her fisherwoman costume.

_I wonder if something happened to her. _We were going to have to work together in the careers later, so maybe I could talk to her and help her out if she needed any…

"I am surprised that District Four had no volunteers." Lepolio spoke up again, breaking me away my thoughts on the District Four girl. "I thought I was going to be the only reaped career."

_Oh._ I frowned in response. Due to how strong and intimidating he appeared to be, I sometimes forgot that Lepolio did not volunteer. He was reaped and did not consensually enter the Hunger Games. That was going to make it difficult for me to kill him. If I had to kill off either of the District One tributes, I would shrug and remember that they entered the Games willingly and knew the risks. Lepolio and the four tributes did not. They were just like most of the outer district tributes.

_If I am the one to kill you, I won't prolong it Lepolio. I'll make sure your wife and your kids don't see you suffer._

"Is there a reason you're staring at me like that?" Lepolio questioned me.

"Huh?" I blinked in surprise before shaking my head. "No, no. I'm so sorry about that!"

"… don't be?" He mumbled in confusion.

I turned my head away from him and the awkward situation I had created. I focused my attention back to the television screen. The tributes from District Four were no longer the main attention. Instead, the audience was focused on the two from District Five.

Both tributes from District Five were dressed up in white lab coats to represent the research aspect of their district. To be honest, their costumes were kinda bad. Therefore, they didn't receive that much of a reaction from the people. Still, the two tributes were trying. The girl was waving shyly to anyone she thought was looking at her.

The District Five boy, on the other hand, seemed much more confident waving to the crowds. The lab coat suited him well and it appeared that the Capitol audience thought the same. Wearing it, he clearly looked like the smartest tribute here. Even if his outfit didn't stand out, I assumed the boy was going to have plenty of sponsors after this was all over.

It didn't take horribly long before the camera changed focused on the District Six chariot. Both tributes were wearing an outfit that appeared to be made out of train tracks. Another awful idea. What were the Capitol stylists thinking when they designed tribute costumes?

The two tributes from District Six didn't need a good costume to stand out, however. Both of them looked extremely uncomfortable and angry around each other. The District Six girl pointed towards him and brought a finger to her neck and slid it across her skin. She signaled her attention well and the Capitol cheered very loud at the aggression. In response, the District Six boy glared at her and pounded his fists together, eliciting a similar reaction.

I remembered them from the reaping. Both tributes got into a very heated argument that made me feel uncomfortable after the District Six boy volunteered. On the screen, both then and now, they looked as if they were going to kill each other any second. They were both probably not aware of it, but their resentment for each other was benefiting each other a lot. I could already tell that the Capitol citizens were debating about which one to sponsor and trying to figure out which District Six tribute would survive their little 'civil war'. I was actually curious myself. I wondered who would kill who first.

In the end, I guess it didn't matter. One of them may kill the other, but the 'survivor' was going to die eventually. Maybe even by hands.

I would be focused on getting myself out of the arena and winning the Hunger Games. I had been dreaming of this moment for years now and coming back a victor to my family and being able to give back to my parents for everything they have done for me. I had a lot of plans for my life after the Games and how I wanted to spend any excess money.

I was going to make my family, my friends, and District Two proud. That was a promise, and I made a habit of not breaking any of my promises!

* * *

**District 11**

**Bane Darnell's POV – District 11 Male**

I watched the chariots go out one by one, paying very close attention to when it was going to be my turn to be seen by the Capitol public. My eyes studied them intently, trying to anticipate how they are being perceived by the Capitol and whether or not they are going to make a strong impression. I needed to learn who was going to be late-game threats in the Games. I needed to be aware of which tributes were going to get sponsorships. Everything was a variable that I needed to take note of. It was a part of my personality: I needed to know every aspect of something before committing to it, and I was committed to winning.

Not that anyone else would know any true information about me. I resisted the urge to smirk and, instead, let loose a few more tears from my eyes. Everything was fake and calculated, starting from my tearful reaping. I'm sure that, because I burst into tears after getting reaped, I was perceived as weak and pathetic. The other tributes would count me out. I wouldn't be on anyone's potential 'threat' list.

They were not aware that I had already received training by my father and uncle in case I was ever reaped and they certainly had no way of knowing that I was knowledgeable in a variety of natural medicines and poisons.

With a few tears and depressed looks, I could effectively control any and all information they had on me. These tears and looks weren't completely unwarranted and forced, I had to admit. I did actually panicked when I was reaped and I was still very nervous about the idea of fighting to the death in the arena. However, these real fears and nerves I felt deep in my mind helped make my act more convincing. I just accentuated them further and made them overcome any other emotion I showed. In doing so, I controlled their perception of me. It was a powerful feeling that I enjoyed.

Perhaps this enjoyment came from my own reputation back home in District Eleven. Back home, I was seen little more than a bastard. My father was the infamous Laurentum Overwhill, the younger brother of one of District Eleven's finest victors and also a well-known philander. It was expected that he had about twelve different children, each from different mothers. I was uncertain how many he had, but I did know I was one of them. I was the product of a one-night stand between him and my mother, who worked at an apothecary shop with her parents.

No matter how hard I would try, I could never fix my reputation. Sure, my neighbors and most people with common sense treated me politely despite my parentage, but others in the district seemed to look down on me. It was something that always infuriated me. I didn't choose to be a bastard. I didn't choose to have a father who decided to sleep with every damn girl he met. I had no say in any of this, so why the fuck was I being looked down on for the shit he did?

"Um, Bane? Are you okay?"

My mind quickly returned to reality and I faced my district partner, Florina Everett. She looked at with concerned eyes hidden behind her glasses.

"Yeah, I'm okay. As okay as I'll be here." I mumbled in response.

"You looked angry. Like really, really angry. Your fist was tightened and everything, like you were about to punch someone." She commented with a frown. "I don't think I've ever seen you look that made before! I mean, I know we just met a few days ago and all, but still. You were really mad!"

I blinked in surprise and confusion. I honestly didn't realize I was that angry. I guess I was more resentful about my treatment and reputation than I thought.

"S-Sorry for concerning you. I, um, was just thinking about well… this situation we're in." I answered with a stutter. I made a conscious effort to keep up a shy, nervous mask at all times to make sure I appeared as pathetic as possible to anyone, even to my own district partner.

"I understand. I agree with you completely. We're in a very, very awful situation." Florina exclaimed dramatically. "I mean, I have to admit that it could be worse for the two of us. We are both are related to victors, so I think we both have had a little bit of training before coming here compared to most other tributes that get reaped. But this really was awful. How many kids from District Eleven have died in the Hunger Games? Way too many! We don't get too many victors: we just get too many dead children. I really hope we don't get added to that list. This is just awful! I don't want to die and I don't want to see you die either!"

Florina continued to go on-and-on about the situation we were in. I listened intently, making sure not to laugh at how dramatic she was being. Knowing her, she would most likely take that the wrong way and would assume I was mocking her.

The girl talked a lot. More than anyone I had ever met. It was slightly annoying, but also amusing. I was actually legitimately amazed how long she could talk about trivial things and how many different topics of conversation she had in mind. I never considered myself an introvert in any manner, but after meeting her, I felt like a borderline mute.

Despite her talkative manner, the girl was actually rather fascinating. She was the daughter of a previous victor, Onyx Everett, who was our mentor this year. Florina actually seemed stronger and more capable than she appeared. Her father had apparently taught her to use a scythe at some point in her life, so she was skilled with weapon. She also had a notepad on hand at any moment and wrote down every detail of every person she had ever met, showing that she was clearly an analytical and perceptive girl. She could probably be a potential threat in the Games if it wasn't for the fact that she was so damn sensitive.

Our district escort, Leaf, made a comment about how she talked too much and Florina looked as if she saw a dead dog. She remained very quiet around him and has gone through great measures to avoid conversation with him. I talked to her about it and she mentioned that she believed the man hated her and that she didn't want to offend him anymore. The very idea was a complete joke, but I couldn't actually laugh outwardly. If I did, she would definitely take offense and give me a similar silent treatment.

She seemed like a rather sweet girl and, if we were back in District Eleven, I could have seen us becoming friends. Here, however, any friendship we could have was going to end painfully for the two of us. It was nice to know, though, that at least my district partner was most likely not going to be much of a threat in the Games.

"Bane? Hello? Are you there?" Florina spoke up.

I shook my head, putting the thoughts about her character and her chances away in the back of my head. "I'm here, sorry. I've just been thinking lately."

"I know." She giggled innocently. "You do that from time to time. A lot of people do actually. Sometimes even me! We just get so wrapped up in our inner monologues that we forget where we are and just think, completely unaware of what's going on around us."

"True, very true." I chuckled lightly. Again, she was an amusing girl.

My eyes turned to the television screen in our waiting room. The District Seven tributes had just been received and were about to be replaced. I could tell that they did not stand out well to the Capitol. They were wearing the standard District Seven tree costume and they both looked atrocious and awkward in them.

The little girl, Winnie Goldstein if I remembered correctly, looked extremely awkward on the stage and made no attempts to get any sponsors. She may get a few pity sponsors, assuming she makes it out of the bloodbath, but she was no long-term threat.

Her partner, Raegae Oak, also did not attempt to get any sponsors. From the look of him on the screen, he seemed to be pissed and uncomfortable with the clothes he was wearing to care about anything else. I remembered his face when he stormed forward on the reaping day. He was no threat: he had anger issues that were going to get him killed quickly.

District Eight's chariot came into view and the two tributes already looked better than the previous ones. They were both wearing colorful fabrics of red, blue, green, and purple as their clothes. Both tributes were waving to the crowd and the District Eight girl, Raven Bell, was blowing kisses to the audience. The audience ate it up and started to cheer even louder for her.

Her partner, Xander Lugar, was nothing notable in my mind. I did notice on screen that it seemed he was making a conscious effort to not throw up. _Again. _Still, he was most likely going to benefit from his partner earning sponsorships for their district.

"The girl's name is Raven, right?" Florina asked. I nodded. Just like me, she had gone out of her way to memorize the names of the other tributes. "She seems like a nice girl. Very friendly! I wonder what she is like?"

_Probably someone who wants you dead._ I resisted the urge to roll my eyes and, instead, opted for nodding my head in meek agreement.

District Eight's chariot left the spotlight and was soon replaced with District Nine. Both tributes were in unique attire: they looked as if they were attending a formal party or something.

The girl, Demetriana Walser, was wearing a golden-yellow dress with grain glued to the seams of the dress and she had golden, grain-shaped earrings to match. The dress was low-cut, leaving not much to the imagination. She seemed rather uncomfortable wearing the dress and seemed to cast sideways glances as if she was looking for something. There was something that was disturbing her: something probably from her past maybe. Despite her discomfort, she made an effort to wave and blow kisses to the audience, who appreciated and loved her for it.

Her partner, Jason Icarus, was themed rather similarly. He wore a black button-up shirt with the buttons being replaced by grains. He had matching black pants that had a line of grain going down the side. His clothes were tight to accentuate his muscles. He, too, seemed uncomfortable and really made no major attempts to gain sponsors with the exceptions with a few nervous waves to the crowd. Unlike his partner, his discomfort seemed the result of general shyness as opposed to some deeper reason. The more I saw him, the more he seemed like an atypical volunteer. Nevertheless, he entered the Games willingly and appeared capable. I would be paying close to attention to him during the training to learn as much as I could about him.

District Nine received a loud applause from the audience before the chariot was replaced with the chariot from District Ten. The tributes were wearing the attire of the most stereotypical cattle ranchers imaginable: brown cowboy boots, jeans, golden belt buckles, long-sleeved red shirts with a brown jacket over it, and brown cowboy hats.

The costume seemed to suit the girl, Maddison Holland, well. She was very comfortable as she rushed around the chariot, waving to everyone she could. At one point, she took off her hat and threw it out into the crowd. The audience erupted into applause as the people in the area where her hat was tossed nearly toppled each other for it. Maddison appeared to know how to work a crowd and was going to leave tonight as a fan favorite. She was definitely going to be a threat.

Her district partner, Logan Faber, acted the exact opposite to her. While she tried to cater to the audience, he remained motionless and didn't look at a single audience member. He had a scowl on his face the entire team and his eyes contained that same deranged quality in him that was evident when he volunteered. Logan scared me. Something about him seemed off. I was going to have to do some heavy planning and research before I tried to take him on.

Suddenly, our chariot was the one about to enter the door and head out to the Capitol. Florina tapped my shoulder and gave me a smile.

"Good luck out there Bane." She told me cheerfully.

"You too Florina." I replied truthfully with a smile. I did wish her well. If anything happened to me in the Games, I hoped she would win. However, I was hoping that situation was something that would never happen.

Our chariot marched forward and we were out in the spotlight of the Capitol. The Capitol was now seeing us: wearing our plain, generic farmhand costumes.

Florina, for a second, appeared to be nervous. The fear quickly disappeared and she was waving to everybody in her standard, cheerful manner. She was cheering too and was encouraging the audience to cheer louder. It worked and she received a roaring applause. She was a very friendly, outgoing girl. It seemed natural that the Capitol citizens would enjoy her.

I simply remained still and waved a little awkwardly to the audience, still maintaining my nervous, innocent boy angle for as long as I could. I wanted to maintain it until the arena and make sure that no other tribute had any inkling about me being a potential threat. I was going to work my ass to make sure I was not a target in the bloodbath or an immediate desired target!

Soon the spotlight faded and moved on to the next chariot.

"It's over." I mumbled a sigh of relief to Florina.

"It is, it is. Now, we just sit and wait for this parade to end." She responded with a smile.

The television screen focused on the District Twelve tributes, wearing the standard miner costumes. The costume seemed to fit the District Twelve boy, Yaro Hailstien, rather well. He seemed comfortable in it and was smiling very wide to the audience. His smile was extremely sincere and seemed to rival only Florina's and maybe the District Two girl, Victoire McBlock's, smile. I could tell he was a genuinely good, outgoing, friendly guy. As a result, I knew immediately that this whole experience was going to end very bad for him.

In contrast, his district partner, Emery Aspen, looked very uncomfortable wearing a miner's outfit and her smile and attitude seemed a lot more forced. It looked like she was containing herself from acting out towards the cheering Capitol citizens. She seemed to have a fight in her, which made me more wary of her than her partner. While Yaro may seem more likable, Emery looked like she would be willing to fight and maybe even kill. I would keep an eye on her as well during the training.

When the allotted time for District Twelve was up, the spotlight switched focus. It went to a platform in the stadium where President Verich Draven was standing. The man had a large smile on his face as he walked over to the microphone.

"Ladies and gentlemen, those were the tributes for this year's Hunger Games! These are our Quarter Quell participants!" He cheered loudly.

The audience erupted into a loud applause. I noticed that the president was doing the job instead of Sapphire Taric, the usual announcer. It was probably due to the Quarter Quell. I didn't know the reason why President Draven was doing the speeches, but I had to admit one thing: he was a showman.

The president proceeded to start talking, delivering a speech about Panem and the Hunger Games. I only paid slight attention. Instead, my mind was replaying the images I had seen of the other tributes of the reaping. I made sure to remember how loud the audience was cheering for each tribute and which ones stood out the most.

I had little time to decipher the remaining variables. In a few days, I was going to get thrown into an arena and told to fight for my life. My father and my uncle gave me a training foundation and now it was my part to further improve my chances through study and analysis of the other tributes. I was going to do everything I could to make sure I was not going to die, no matter how many hours of study and planning it meant to ensure that!

**Florina Everett's POV – District 11 Female**

When the president finished his speech, the tribute parade was completed. As Capitol citizens in the audience started to leave, the chariots were brought back to the waiting room. Once we are all back in the room, Bane and I got off the chariot.

"Glad to be done with that again." Bane commented with a sigh of relief.

"Oh, yeah. It feels great!" I nodded in agreement. "I'm ready to just to go to our rooms, take off these ridiculous costumes, and just fall asleep."

As he said, I was so relieved to be done with the parade. Normally, I wasn't someone who was nervous around a lot of people. I actually enjoyed having a lot of people to talk to and be around! Tonight, however, was a very big deal and it was intimidating being in front of so many Capitol citizens who could change your fate in the Games with just some money. In addition to the intimidation factor, the farmhand costume I was wearing made me feel like someone I was not. It was way too tight and just not me at all. Despite all of this, I had to have made an impression to the people, and I really, really hoped I stood out.

After getting off the chariot, I could see my father walk towards us. I couldn't hide my smile as I saw the large grin on his face.

"How did we do Dad?" I asked him.

"Very good Florina. You looked amazing up there!" He stated proudly. After getting up to us, he pulled me into a hug: one that I was quick to return.

The Hunger Games would always be awful things, but if there was one thing I could be thankful about them, it was that they helped recreate a relationship with my father, Onyx Everett. He was reaped when he was seventeen in the one hundred twenty-fourth Hunger Games and managed to win in a big battle against the colossal District One boy that year.

After winning, my father developed an unhealthy obsession with watching Hunger Games reruns. He had told me that he could only truly forgot about the events of his Games when he was watching another year's Hunger Games and imagining them instead. He tried to convince mother and me to watch these reruns with him and he tried to train me. My mother, although very sweet and loving, was extremely against the Hunger Games and didn't want my father training me at all, even if it was in case I was reaped. She associated training with volunteering and did not want to see me encouraged to enter the Games! Nevertheless, my father trained me in secret and when she found out, she left him and dragged me along with her.

My father made many attempts to come back, but mother went out of her way to cut him out of both our lives. She didn't believe in second chances and, according to her, he broke her trust for good. Still, I knew that he was only training me to help me in the chance I was reaped. And here I was, a reaped tribute, and I was very grateful that my father had taught me a few things with a scythe before mother forced him away from us. More so than that, I was just grateful to be able to spend more time with my father. I had missed him so much and I was just so glad to be able to talk to him and hug him again!

"How did I look?" Bane asked quietly.

My father and I turned to face my district partner. I felt bad for him. He, too, had a former Hunger Games victor as a family member. It was his uncle, a guy named Leonis. Unfortunately, he was not assigned to mentor this year's Games. Therefore, he was left alone. I didn't really want to imagine what I would be like if my father wasn't here to comfort me. If he wasn't, I imagined that I would still be crying like I was after I found out I was going into the Hunger Games.

"You looked fine. You stood out as well, just not as much. You really didn't make much attempt to appeal to the crowds." My father noted. He let go of me, ending our hug, and turned to face him with a serious face. "But that's all fine in the end. You don't strike me as the type of guy who likes all the people and their attention. The parade and the interviewers were never going to be the source of your selling point. Where you are going to stand out is in the training. I have a feeling you're probably going to get a high score, and that is where your sponsors will come from."

I smiled at that. One of the things I was glad about was that my father wasn't favoring me. He had been devoting a lot of time to Bane as well. Although Bane was assigned to another mentor, he still tried to help the boy and give him a fighting chance to. Bane seemed like a nice guy and he deserved help too.

My district partner nodded in agreement before asking: "Where's Luisa?"

"Your mentor is knocked out in her bed from a hangover. Typical. She couldn't come over here."

I jumped at the sound of the voice. The District Eleven escort, Leaf, rushed over to us.

"What an awful woman. Can't even come to support her tributes. At least you aren't like her Onyx!" The man commented, patting my father on the shoulder. He then turned his attention to me and Bane. "You two looked absolutely amazing up there!"

Bane nodded in acceptance of the compliment. I, on the other hand, took a step back.

Whenever I met someone new, I made a habit of observing them and writing down a list of their traits, and figuring out exactly who they were. After a few hours after meeting him, I finished my analysis of Leaf and I realized that he was not a nice person. Through observation, I learned that he was selfish, picky, pretentious, over-confident, over-indulgent, and blunt. Sure, he could be funny at times, but the list of negative traits outnumbers his positive ones.

It also didn't help that he didn't like me. I was telling him about my life back home and rolled his eyes before commenting that I talked too much. He was mocking me. It really bothered me how much he disliked me.

"Are you still giving me the silent treatment?" He questioned with an eye roll.

I gave no verbal response. I didn't enjoy talking to people like him. I didn't want to say anything and offend him and make him like me even less and I also didn't want to have to hear him say something rude to me.

He scoffed in annoyance before he turned away. "Well, let's hurry up and get to our rooms. It's been a long day."

My father nodded. "Come on."

Bane and I nodded and we followed them quietly. Eventually, we reached the elevator. Inside the elevator, waiting to head up, was the tributes from District Five, Stephanie Volk and Icarus Bolt. They were standing in their white lab coats next to a brown-haired, slightly muscular man in his early thirties.

"Atticus, how are you doing? It's been a while since you've been a mentor, hasn't it?" My father exclaimed as he walked forward towards the man, holding out his hand.

The man, Atticus, smiled as he walked forward my father and shook his hand. "Onyx, it's been a while. How's life been?"

"Shit, like the usual. But what can you do?" Father laughed loudly before he put his hand on my shoulder. "This here is my little girl Florina. I know I've mentioned her a few times!" He then put his other hand on Bane's shoulder. "And this is Bane. He's Leonis's nephew."

"Two tributes reaped from the families of victors? Who would have expected that?" Atticus commented with a dark look in his eyes. The look faded though as he turned to face us. "It's a pleasure to meet you both. I've heard great things about the two of you."

My father and the man, Atticus, quickly broke into conversation with Leaf and the District Five escort, a quiet, short man named Minos who I didn't even notice when I first entered the elevator. Bane and I stood next to the two tributes from District Five as the elevator started to make its ascent.

"You two looked good out there, you know?" I told the two with a smile. "Like really good. You both looked like geniuses!"

Icarus didn't really react. He simply shrugged, accepting the compliment. Stephanie, on the other hand, smiled in response. "Thank you. You looked good as well."

"You think so?" I asked in surprise. "I didn't really think that. I felt extremely uncomfortable in that farmer costume. It was actually too tight on me and I felt like I was supposed to show off my body. It made me feel really disgusted! I mean, I'm not attractive at all! Who would honestly want to take a look at me? But you really think I looked good up there?"

Stephanie blinked in surprise before she adjusted her glasses and studied my costume. "Um… it does look a little tight, yeah, but I thought you looked good at least."

"Well, thank you so much!" I told her happily. "I like your glasses by the way. They're so pretty! What are they made out of?"

Her eyes seemed to light up and a broad grin developed on it. "Thank you! I actually made them myself. I wrote the blueprints a while ago, but I think they were made with some plastic, metal-"

"Wait, you made your glasses? You can do things like that?" I questioned in surprise, interrupting her.

"Uh huh. I can make a lot of things if I have the right tools." Stephanie commented in an animated fashion. I could tell she was becoming more comfortable with talking to me. She took her glasses off and studied them a little with her plain eyes. "These weren't too difficult to make. The hardest part was just obtaining all the little details, but after that, it wasn't that hard to do."

"They look great honestly! I'd love it if I had a pair like those." I told her as I adjusted my own glasses. "Mine are kinda dorky. They make me look a little smarter than I actually am. Not that I'm dumb or anything! It's just, people see the glasses and assume a few things about me and they don't really apply. It's kinda frustrating actually! I'm not some super genius or something like you are most likely. I'm just, well, me!"

Stephanie giggled in response to my comment. "Well, if I have the opportunity, I'll look around the area and see if I can make you a pair of better glasses."

"Oh, you don't have to do that! I'm just teasing. I've had these glasses for a while. I can't just get rid of them!" I informed her as I put the glasses back on my head.

Stephanie opened her mouth to say something when the elevator stopped moving. The door opened up, revealing the floor for District Five.

"That's our stop! We have to be heading out now Onyx. It was a pleasure seeing you again. And it was nice to meet you, Florina and Bane." Atticus commented as he walked out.

The district escort, Minos, bid farewell to Leaf before following behind. Icarus walked out of the elevator without a single word. Stephanie, on the other hand, put her glasses back on and turned to face me.

"It was nice meeting you. I hope you have a good night!" She told me.

"You as well!" I replied happily.

Stephanie's smile remained on her face as she walked out of the elevator. When she left, the elevator door closed and we started our ascent again.

With the District Five people gone, the elevator was significantly quitter. My father and Leaf continued to chat with each other about plans. Bane, however, remained quiet in his corner. I noticed that he was in deep thought. During the ride up, he had been staring at Icarus the entire time. I had noticed that Icarus was doing the same to him. The two were studying each other intently.

He didn't seem to be in a mood to talk now, as he seemed too focused on his thoughts. Still, I was very interested in what he was thinking and if he noticed anything about the District Five boy that unnerved him. I made a mental note to ask him later.

A few seconds passed before the elevator finally stopped at the eleventh floor. The doors opened and the four of us walked out into the area for District Eleven tributes. My mouth immediately dropped.

Back at home, I guess I lived a luxurious life due to my father's income as a victor. Even after my mother and I left, he still sent money to support us. Nevertheless, everything that my family owned paled in comparison to the beautiful Capitol merchandise in our living quarters. The handcrafted wood, the beautiful ornaments and decorations that covered the room, the beautiful tapestries… it was all so much! I couldn't believe there was any place this luxurious!

"Well, here is where you all will stay. District Eleven has one of the best living quarters here." Leaf commented with a grin on his face. "Get some rest kids. You deserved it."

Bane and I didn't need to be told twice. I rushed over to my father and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek before I walked down the hallway, looking for my room. Once I walked in, I jumped on the bed and simply laid on it. I had never felt something as comfy as it in my entire life!

The tribute parade was over and I was ready to take a small break and relax. However, in the back, I couldn't help but shake the feeling that this day was still not over…

* * *

**Author's Note:** Oh, Florina, you have no idea. The parade is over and, in a standard Games, the night would be over. However, this is a Quarter Quell and there was something else planned this year...something much more dark!

Ominous hints aside, that was the most recent chapter! I worked hard to get it out as fast as I could for you all. What do you think? :)

We are one chapter away from knowing all of the tributes. Next chapter, you will meet the tributes from District One and Twelve! Then the training begins. The actual Games are starting up soon and I'm so excited to start writing them!

So...what did you think of these four? Lepolio? Victoire? Bane? Florina?

I'll get to work on the next chapter right away. Thank you all so much for the great reviews and support I've received thus far! It all means so much to hear what you all say. Thank you guys so much again! :) I'll see you all when I finish the next chapter!


	8. The Announcement: Attitude and Jokes

**District 1**

**Kendra Perone's POV – District 1 Female**

"A toast for the marvelous tributes of District One!" Royal, the District One escorted, announced loudly as he raised a glass of wine with his left hand. "May the odds be ever in their favor!"

Everyone at the dinner table raised their own wine glasses, myself included. Apparently, it was a tradition for the District One tributes, the mentors, and the escort, Royal, to have a glass of wine and a mini-dinner each night before bed.

Royal seemed like the type of man who enjoyed celebrations more than anything else. He would look for any reason to party, no matter how trivial it may seem to others. All he cared about was drinking and having a good time. The man would probably celebrate if I died in the arena. He would probably make up some bullshit claim that I 'fought bravely' or that I 'had a good death that needed to be recognized'. Beneath his smiles and jokes, Royal was a repulsive person: very similar to most of humanity. I would much rather spend my time alone in my bedroom either thinking or maybe getting some sleep.

Not that I would ever voice my thoughts about him aloud. The District One mentors for this year, Dante and Lorena, informed me and Ariail that Royal had a lot of connections within the Capitol and a lot of friends. He would definitely be a valuable tool to make sponsorships.

With that in mind, I cheerfully smiled at every dinner and drank my wine merrily, keeping my thoughts to myself. It was something I was used to. Every day of my life, I always kept my true thoughts and feelings hidden from the people around me. I would always be the girl that society wanted me to be. When I was living at the District One orphanage, I would try to be the perfect little girl to get adopted. Being polite and friendly to every family that walked in was the only hope I had to get out of that hellhole.

When I turned seven and was finally adopted, I thought that I would be able to stop pretending and actually be the happy, polite girl everyone thought I was. Unfortunately, even after my adoption, I had to keep up my act. Instead of being brought to a loving home, I was thrown into a crowded house with rules and regulations that I was forced to follow and fulfill. I did everything my mother and father asked of me with a smile, no matter how much I wanted to ignore their orders. I would do anything to get the love and attention, no matter how many times they refused to give it to me.

Over the course of my life, my 'polite' façade continued to develop. Faking politeness was not a hard task at all for me: it came naturally to me. However, I could hardly wait to enter the arena and stop pretending and show the world who I really was.

"You all looked outstanding while on the chariots if I say so myself." Royal complimented me and Ariail on the parade for what was most likely the eighteenth time.

"Naturally." Ariail stated with a smug chuckle.

"District One is always the best." The escort chuckled in agreement. He then turned to face me. "You stood out especially well Kendra. That gold skintight dress looked absolutely stunning on you! It really didn't leave much left for the imagination, if you know what I mean." The man gave me a wink. "I'm sure a few of my friends were very interested in you."

"You think so?" I laughed in response, smiling widely.

I had to hold back the urge to snap at the man. I already a boyfriend back home named Matthias. He was actually the guy who got me into training for the Hunger Games, and he was the only one who deserved to see my body. I don't care how interested Royal or any of his friends were: if they tried to act out on this 'interest', I'd make sure to have their heads cut off.

"Oh I know so! If I wasn't already engaged, I would definitely be interested." The man teased as he lifted his left hand to show off the diamond ring on his ring finger.

"Mind if I bring the conversation back to the tribute parade? Ariail, Kendra: what did you both think of the other tributes?" Lorena spoke up after taking a sip of her wine in a tired tone-of-voice. She clearly didn't want to be here and was simply trying to rush the dinner party. Between her and Dante, she was the more lax mentor. She seemed so atypical from other District One victors. It was strange to believe that she somehow won the Games five years ago!

"Not too many stood out in my opinion. Most of the other reaping costumes sucked." Ariail spoke up with a shrug. "And none of it really matters. The District Three tributes were the ones with the best costumes and they are both most likely going to die in the bloodbath."

"Costumes aren't everything, Ariail." Dante stated sharply with cold eyes. Dante, unlike Lorena, was a more stereotypical District One victor. He was serious, cold, and generally ruthless even in conversation. It was not difficult to imagine him in the Games thirty-five years ago: cutting off the heads of the other tributes with his sword. "Were you not paying attention to who appeared capable to sponsors?"

"Like that matters. The career pack will always get the most support. We produce the most victors. Therefore we will get the most sponsors. No one wants to throw away support and money to the losers." My district partner answered with another shrug as he started to drink his wine.

"We probably will have the most support, yeah. After all, the Capitol sure loved the District Two tributes this year, didn't they?" I commented with a loud laugh.

Ariail quickly chugged the remaining wine before he slammed the wine glass down to the table, nearly smashing it into pieces. A scowl developed on his face, which caused a grin to develop on mine.

There was no reason for me to fake cordiality with Ariail. We were both going into an arena in a few days with the intent of killing each other after all! The egotistical boy was also filled with so many insecurities that I couldn't resist making fun of him whenever I could. He had bragged to Dante and Lorena about how hard of a person he was to read, but I figured out everything I needed to know about him in one conversation. He was so insecure and easy to rile up. I already knew that he was going to be no threat in the arena. If anything, he was going to be a tool that I could control, set loose on a few of the other tributes, and then dispose of when he was no longer needed.

"The District Two tributes stood out, yes, but they are nothing compared to us." He hissed towards me. "You should be more concerned about our own sponsors and not the sponsors they'll get!"

"Lighten up and take a joke." I retorted with a slight eye roll. That comment actually annoyed me. I was concerned about anything and everything that could affect the Games. I was going to ensure I made it out of the Games alive. It actually angered me that Ariail seemed to doubt how serious I was about this.

"I'm not one to joke around. Take things seriously dammit." He replied back with a glare.

"I'm always serious. Deathly serious." I fired back at him with a cold hiss. "Don't let a few jokes make you think otherwise."

"Guys, guys, please don't fight. We're all having a good time at our party!" Royal pleaded, bringing his hands together. "I don't want to see any more anger right now!"

"Yeah, save the bad blood for later. That'll come with time in the arena." Dante stated sharply with narrowed eyes.

Ariail sighed in frustration loudly before he gave me one final glare: one that I returned. We then returned our attention back to our drinks and the 'party'.

"These next few days are going to be crucial. Make sure you're as skilled with your weapons as possible. Also, make sure the career alliance is still intact. Every few years or so, most of the careers will die in the bloodbath due to miscommunication with each other about the alliance." Lorena commented with a hiccup.

"Already checked in with them before the parade and will do so again during the training days. The careers will be strong this year, although I'm concerned about the non-volunteers. They'll most likely hold back the career pack to a slight degree." Ariail responded.

"The boy from District Two could probably take you in a fist-fight easily." I commented nonchalantly.

"Good thing I won't be using my fists to fight him. I'll cut him down with my katana and that'll be the end of his life!" Ariail shouted at me with anger visible in his eyes.

I made no comment, preferring to chuckle to myself silently. Ariail was just too fun to rile up. He was going to be a lot of fun to work with in the Hunger Games.

"Well, I for one am looking forward to watching you two do splendid in the arena. You all will make your district and your family proud." Royal stated with a smile.

"Fuck District One and fuck my family!" Ariail cursed loudly as he squeezed the wine glass in his hands tightly. The glass shattered, causing the remaining wine to spill all over the table. Wine dripped with some blood from Ariail's hand. "I'm doing this thing for myself and no one else!"

With those words, Ariail stormed out of the room without a comment towards any of us. Royal was looking in the direction he ran in complete shock while Lorena and Dante appeared slightly amused.

For the first time since we met, I actually agreed with Ariail on something. I wasn't here for District pride nor was I here for my family. I would also agree with him on the wording: _fuck my family._

In some ways, I almost wish I had remained at the orphanage. At least back at the orphanage, I had the hope that my life would one day change after I was adopted. Life at home was equally hellish without any hope whatsoever. My adoptive mother was cold and heartless. She never spoke me to unless there was a need for it and treated me little better than an avox. My adoptive father favored my adoptive older sister, Aoife, and was constantly busy with work to care about anything or anyone else. Aoife was a spoiled bitch who cried whenever she didn't get way. I had to resist the urge to kill her several times throughout my life. She was the most obnoxious person I had ever met.

The only person in the family that I even cared about was my adoptive little sister, Zelena. While I did love her and miss her, she was only one person in that house that seemed to respect me. The other three members of my family I hated with a burning passion.

I was in no means here to make them proud. I was here because I was pissed off and tired of my life back home. I wanted an adventure and needed a new life, and what better way to create this life by coming back home a victor?

"Did… I say something wrong?" Royal mumbled in shock, his eyes tearing up. "I was just trying to be nice to him…"

"Don't worry about him. He seems like the type of guy with a lot of problems." Lorena consoled the escort with a pat on the back.

"Problems that'll get him killed off." Dante cursed, shaking his head in disappointment. The man turned his attention to me. "You really are the only chance District One has to do well this year Kendra. Train well."

"I will. Thank you." I replied with a bow, attempting to be respectful to him.

Dante nodded in acceptance. With the District One 'party' seemingly ending now due to Ariail's outburst, I was about to excuse myself and head to my room to sleep. This intention vanished, however, when the room to the living quarters was opened. Three peacekeepers walked in to the room. They were all armed with standard Capitol guns and all had serious expressions on their faces.

"Excuse the interruption, but the tributes for this year's Games have been summoned by President Draven for a small meeting." One of the peacekeepers spoke up.

"What meeting? This isn't standard protocol." Royal commented. His tears from Ariail's outburst were now replaced with confusion.

"You will know what it is about shortly. For now, I need the tributes to follow us." The peacekeeper replied, dismissing the question.

Confusion had now crept onto my face. What was going on? Why did the president want to meet up with us?

"Well, as you can see, Kendra is right here and ready for you. I'll go get Ariail." Lorena spoke up as she stood up and walked away in the direction Ariail had ran to.

The peacekeeper nodded before he turned to me. "Miss Kendra, we will be waiting for your district partner to arrive. Once he is here, we will escort you to the waiting room."

"Understood." I responded, hiding my confusion.

I had no clue what was going on and I did not like it. I was a person who liked to know everything that was going on around me. This 'meeting' was something I had no knowledge of and, therefore, it was troubling. There was an ominous feeling that I could not shake. From what I heard from previous District One victors, it was never a good thing when the president wanted to meet with you.

Throughout this whole experience, I had been feeling rather confident in myself. Now, I was starting to feel concerned. I was already dreading whatever we were going to be told…

**Ariail Bardineux's POV – District 1 Male**

"Where the hell are we going?" I shouted at the peacekeepers.

"You'll see when you get there. Keep your mouth shut and we'll get there faster." One of the peacekeepers shouted back.

A scowl developed on my face. The peacekeepers were in the process of escorting me and Kendra to some unknown destination for some unknown meeting. This was not something that happened in the years before ours. It was very suspicious and I did not like it in the slightest.

I was not in the mood for some unannounced 'meeting'. Royal's ridiculous dinner parties each night always put me in a foul mood. I always hated the damn things and the fake attitude everyone had to have during them. I struggled every time to remain polite to him. This night, I could not. Kendra made her usual snarky comments that pissed me off, but Royal himself infuriated me the most when he mentioned my family. That had always been a sore subject for me.

Life with my family was monotonous. Every day was similar to the last. My father, mother, and older brother were all dull, complacent people who had no desire for anything else in their life. I had no intentions of sharing their boring, repetitive lifestyle and I hated them for enjoying it. To some extent, I was happy when my father kicked me out of the house a few weeks ago. I always relished every second I was away from them and, now, I never had to be around them again.

_If only I was kicked out in more favorable circumstances._ A frown crept upon to my face. Three months ago, I met a woman in her mid-thirties named Amorette. She shared a lot of the ideals I had about life: about how boring it is and how we, as humans, should go out and try and find anything to entertain us. We clicked immediately after meeting. Our relationship started from there and quickly turned sexual, despite her being married. She didn't care and, obviously, I didn't. It made the sex that much more thrilling to me when I saw the ring on her hand, knowing that we were doing something that the average neanderthal would see as taboo. Our little sexy rendezvouses were the excitement we were looking for.

This excitement quickly faded away when she realized that she was pregnant. Apparently, she and her husband had not been having sex in a few months. Therefore, she knew I was the father. At the time, I wanted nothing to do with her or that bastard of a baby. I had no intention of being a father, let alone a father at seventeen years old! However, soon after, my own father found out about our affair and kicked me out of the house to avoid any possible shaming from his peers. Amorette refused to take me in or even look at me after I turned her down when she told me she was pregnant.

Everything was taken away from when Amorette told me about her pregnancy. These events left me alone and homeless with no comforts and with nothing going my way in life. This is what motivated my decision to volunteer in the first place. I had nothing left to lose in my life and everything to gain if I won the Games and became a victor.

"Alright, we are here." The peacekeeper spoke up, interrupting my thoughts.

In that moment, I became aware of my surroundings. The peacekeepers had led me and Kendra to a large, open room with twenty-four black chairs. Nothing was of note in the room with the exception of a few video cameras. It looked similar to a generic scene in one of those Capitol talk shows that occur daily. Not a single person was here for us to 'meet' with us.

"What are we going to do here?" I asked with a glare.

"Wait and you'll see." The peacekeeper commented with a devilish grin on his face. "For now, take a seat."

I rolled my eyes as I took a seat in one of the seats. _Every damn peacekeeper was so fucking smug_. There was nothing more that I wanted than to rip that grin off his face and shove it up his ass.

Kendra followed me, taking a seat right next to mine. The two of us waited quietly, not making any attempt to talk to each other. I truly hated girl and, based on how often she insulted me, she probably felt similarly to me. I almost couldn't wait for the Games to start. Once they started and the career alliance ended, I was going to make sure she died. Her constant insults were grating and I could hardly wait to kill her.

Soon, we were joined by the tributes from the other districts. In five minutes, all the chairs were filled. All twenty-four tributes were now in the room. Each of us were all wondering one thing: _what the fuck was going on?_

Another two minutes passed before we got our answer. An older man with gray hair and glasses walked into the room and headed towards the center. He was a man with olive-colored skin with black scars covering most of his visible skin. The scars actually resembled burn marks! He wore a red jacket and black pants. I could tell that he was from the Capitol, but he looked atypical from the standard Capitol citizens. He presented himself differently as well. He seemed to carry an aura filled with confidence and strength with every step he took.

"Tributes of the Sixth Quarter Quell: welcome. For those of you who don't know me, my name is Damien Brand. I've been a gamemaker for forty-two years now and I have been the Head Gamemaker for the Hunger Games for the past fifteen years now." The man introduced himself with a grin on his face.

My eyes narrowed on the man as I studied him intently. His aura now picked up a dangerous, intimidating layer to it.

"I would like to personally apologize for announcing this meeting so late. I realize a few of you were about to go to sleep; most likely to prepare for the training tomorrow. President Draven also asked me to send you his regards about not being able to show up. He has to film a certain announcement to make for the citizens of Panem and he wanted me to personally deliver it to you all. I hope you find this at least slightly informative." Head Gamemaker Brand noted with a maniacal grin on his face. "After all, we figured that you all would want to be aware of this year's twist for the Hunger Games."

_Finally!_ I had been waiting to hear what the twist was ever since it was announced that it would be 'a surprise'. It was a slightly intimidating concept, but nothing that bothered me too much. It didn't matter what the Capitol was going to throw my way: I was going to win.

Nevertheless, I was curious about what I was going to have to face.

"What is it?" The District Twelve girl nearly growled, a scowl on her face.

"Patience." Brand brushed off the girl's demand with a shrug. "Before I reveal it, I feel you all should be familiar with the previous Quarter Quells. You all remember them, right? What was the first Quarter Quell?"

"That was the twenty-fifth Hunger Games. The year where the individual districts voted on who was being thrown into the Hunger Games." The District Five boy spoke up.

My eyes quickly rushed over to the boy. If I remembered correctly, his name was Icarus. He was one of four volunteers from the outer districts. Outer-district volunteers were always unique. Quite often, whenever one appeared, they were dangerous opponents and often victors of their year. The fact that there were four of them this year intimidated me slightly. They all needed to die in the bloodbath.

"Correct." Brand nodded in acceptance. "The second one?"

"The fiftieth Hunger Games." The District Twelve girl spoke up. Her scowl had developed into something similar to a smug smirk. "That was the year where the number of tributes reaped was doubled to forty-eight. District Twelve won that year!"

The girl spoke with a notable arrogance that made me want to puke. I couldn't wait to crush it. While she was true that her district won that year, District Twelve was not going to be winning this year. The girl and her district partner were most likely going to die early in the arena.

"And after that, the Third Quarter Quell was the year where you all took tributes from the pool of existing victors." Cascade, the District Four boy, commented aloud. "That was the year Beetee won, correct?"

"Yes it was. He had a group of allies that had protected him for some reason, allowing him to develop an electric generator that he used to electrocute all the remaining tributes in the Games." Brand nodded in agreement.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes. All of these tributes were thinking they were so smart for reciting information about the most basic Hunger Games. Everyone knew what happened in the Quarter Quells. It didn't make them special that they could show-off some basic information!

"What happened in the Fourth Quarter Quell?" Brand questioned.

"That was the year you where volunteering was forbidden. Everyone was reaped." I answered before anyone else. If the other tributes thought that they could show off with their knowledge of these past games, then so could I! "The victor was some girl from District Five."

"That is correct. And finally, the Fifth Quarter Quell?" The Head Gamemaker asked.

"That was the year where the age limit was changed. As long as you were over twelve, you could have been reaped for that year." I spoke up again. "A father from District Seven who volunteered for his son won that year."

"Yes. Very good. So you all are familiar with these Games. You were even familiar with the victors. You all certainly know how grand they were!" Brand exclaimed with a laugh. "All of us are going to make a Hunger Games that surpasses them all! Together, we will make one remembered forever!"

The Head Gamemaker seemed like an overly dramatic, eccentric man. It was rather obnoxious. I didn't care if this year was a loved, remembered Hunger Games for everyone watching it. As long as I came out alive, then that was all that mattered to me. Any resulting popularity would be an appreciated, but unneeded, bonus.

"Quit stalling and just tell us what the fucking twist is? I was just about to sleep!" The District Seven boy hissed.

Brand stopped laughing immediately and glared at the boy. Soon, his glare disappeared and he started to laugh in the same maniacal tone-of-voice. He then pulled out a small card from his pocket.

"'On the one hundred fiftieth anniversary, as a reminder to the rebels that their actions endangered the livelihood of all citizens of Panem and not just their own, the lives of each male and female tribute will be tied to the life of a loved one back home.'" He read.

… _Excuse me?_

"To simplify that, after you all were accepted as this year's tributes, we did background checks on you all. We found the person that we deemed closest to you. That person's life is now in your hands." Brand explained, his grin seemingly getting wider. "When you die, your loved one will die with you."

Tension filled the entire room as the eyes of all the tributes widened. I could feel my breathing becoming more and more unsteady.

"What? No! You can't do that!" One of the tributes shouted. I didn't even bother to look up to see who shouted it. "That's not fair!"

"You don't understand anything, do you all? None of you can do shit! The Capitol has authority of your lives. Nothing is 'fair'." Head Gamemaker Brand shouted back with a scoff.

When I volunteered, I had honestly thought there was nothing else to lose. My family had just kicked me out. I had no comforts. I had hardly any money or reputation! Now, though, I realized that I had something to lose… or rather, someone.

Who was being put attached to my life? I had a feeling that it wouldn't be anyone from my family. I wasn't close to them and they clearly weren't to me. They didn't even bother to visit me before the Games at the Justice Building. There were only two choices that it could be: my friend Cartier and Amorette. It was most likely going to be Cartier. Amorette and I did our best to hide our affair. There's no way she could be in the running for this list…

A feeling of nausea entered my body. I didn't want to deal with this. I didn't want to have the responsibility of another person's life on my hands. This is not what I signed up for!

"Anyway, you all listen up, because I'm going to let you all know who your life is linked to. We'll be starting with the District One Male." The Head Gamemaker stated as he turned to face me. "Ariail, your life is linked to your lover, Amorette."

I clenched my fists tightly as I looked downward, mumbling to myself one word: "Fuck…"

* * *

**District 12**

**Emery Aspen's POV – District 12 Female**

"Kendra Perone, the District One female: your life will be linked to your younger sister, Zelena." Head Gamemaker Brand spoke up.

_Shit._ This was happening. This was really happening!

Normally, in a situation like this, I would be pissed. I was one of the first people in the room to call bullshit on this stupid twist after all! Right now, I couldn't muster the energy to be outraged. All I felt was fear.

My eyes wandered towards the two District One tributes. The boy, Ariail, was looking downward in disgust while the girl, Kendra, was staring blankly with wide eyes and open mouth. Even the careers were stunned! No one signed up for this. What kind of sick motherfucker thought up this twist?

"Lepolio Huang, the District Two male: your life will be linked to your son, Miall." Brand stated.

Immediately, Lepolio's eyes narrowed in anger. I felt nauseous as I thought about what the Gamemaker had just said. Lepolio was eighteen years old from what I remembered. Any kid he had could not be much older than two or three. They were even willing to kill off children that young for this stupid Quarter Quell twist?

"This isn't right. This isn't right." I mumbled quietly to myself.

I couldn't think of who they were going to link me to. Unlike most of the other tributes here, I didn't have many people that liked me. I was always considered rude and bitchy to people: a fair assessment of me if I had to be honest. I made no attempts to be friendly with people I didn't like and I didn't like many people at all. The only people that I would consider myself close to were my parents and my best friend, Aiden.

I really respected my parents a lot. They were both merchants and managed to earn enough money that we were all able to live a decent life, even in District Twelve. While they were both busy and away from home often, I loved them both and looked up to them greatly. I had plenty of good memories with them. They had done so much to give me a good life that I would hate to have either of them linked to me!

At the same time, I was really close to Aiden. The two of us had been best friends since we met when were five years old. The two of us were nearly inseparable. Over the course of our sixteen years of life, we had done a lot of crazy shit together from throwing rocks at store windows to egging the mayor of District Twelve's house. Breaking social norms and the law was fun to us: we enjoyed working together and wreaking havoc and mischief on the district. We bonded as we did things that no normal person would ever consider doing!

I couldn't imagine any of them having their life linked to mine. I really wished that it could be some random person. Maybe some random schmuck who actually enjoyed the Hunger Games? Or maybe the mayor of District Twelve? A peacekeeper? I really didn't care who: as long as it wasn't my parents or Aiden. Anybody but them. They didn't deserve this…

"Victoire McBlock, District Two female: your life will be linked with your younger brother, Cameron." Brand stated.

The District Two girl, Victoire, shook her head multiple times in response. It looked as if the girl was trying to resist the urge to cry. A part of me noted the irony that a career of all types of people trying her hardest not to cry, but I quickly brushed it aside. I couldn't imagine a single person, not even a career, who would be okay with a twist like this!

The reactions slowly started to blur together. The boy from District Three, Ethan, started to shake in fear after hearing that he was linked to his father. The girl from District Three, Kaylee, was completely stunned upon hearing that her life was tied to her lover, some dude named Harper. Cascade, the boy from District Four, looked ill after hearing that his life was tied to his older brother's. His partner, Alaska, looked completely terrified at the prospect of her younger brother dying and her eyes began to frantically roam the room as if she was looking for a way out.

_Completely understood_. I didn't think it was possible, but now, I wanted to return back home more than ever. I wanted to be anywhere else but her in this room in the Capitol. I'd even take life in the District Twelve prison or a trip to the mines over this!

"The District Five boy, Icarus Bolt, will be linked to the life of his cousin, Tallie." Brand informed the lanky boy.

My eyes turned their attention towards the District Five boy. Icarus's eyes were completely narrowed and filled with no emotion. Yaro, my district partner, had made a joke that Icarus resembled a robot when he volunteered during the reaping preview. Right now, he looked more robotic than ever before. He was trying his hardest to any visible emotion whatsoever.

His district partner, Stephanie, made no attempt to hide her emotions. Upon hearing that her life was connected to the life of her older brother, tears started rolling down her eyes. I couldn't help but feel some sympathy for her. We all had to feel like crying. There was no shame in tearing up. All I could do was hope I didn't tear up when I heard the news…

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

Immediately, my attention turned towards the District Six boy, Booker. He had just been told that his life was linked to his father and he was now standing up out of his chair, glaring at the Head Gamemaker.

"You can't do any of this! None of these people can compete at all! They don't have a chance to fight for their lives! My father can't fight for his life in the arena! THIS IS IMMORAL!" He shouted, his voice getting louder with each sentence.

"Cry me a river kid. You volunteered for this shit." Brand stated dismissively. "Now, sit your ass down and be quiet like a good little tribute before the peacekeepers force you down."

After a few seconds of tense silence, Booker sat back down in his chair, fuming. I sympathized with him entirely. The fear of who my 'loved one' was going to be was the only thing keeping me back from reacting just like him.

If my fear ever stared to fade, I would have to resist that urge. Attacking the man would most likely doom me and my mother, father, or Aiden in the arena. Knowing what was at risk this year, I was going to have to fight even harder. I needed to resist doing something stupid out of anger: I needed to make sure I came out alive more than ever so that no one died with me!

I had to be calm. I had to be heartless. I had to win!

When the Head Gamemaker was sure Booker was not going to try anything, he continued with the names. Alexandra, Booker's district partner, started to bite her nails upon hearing her mother was connected to her life. She was, however, making a conscious effort to hide her true feelings. Other than her nail biting, she had no visible reaction to the news. The District Seven boy, unlike her, made no attempt to hide his feelings and reaction.

"Fuck all of this!" Raegae screamed loudly, making sure to not censor his thoughts in the slightest. "My little brother has done NOTHING to any of you! I won't let any of you kill him! FUCK ALL YOU CAPITOL SHITS! FUCK ALL OF YOU!"

He started to get out his chair with tightened fists, but he was too slow. One of the peacekeepers pulled out a tranquilizer gun and shot him in the arm. The effects were immediate: Raegae was knocked unconscious.

I couldn't resist the urge of rolling my eyes at Raegae's outburst. While I was mostly holding back due to my own fear, I was resisting the urge to try something like. Even Booker, who had a similar verbal reaction, had the sense to not say something _that_ stupid. The District Seven boy just ruined any chance he had of getting out of the Games. He, effectively, signed his little brother's death warrant. I could not imagine a single scenario where he telling the Capitol to go fuck off was not going to come back and bite him in the ass.

I liked giving people nicknames once I had enough of information about them to form a strong opinion. Looking at the boy from Seven, I now knew enough about him to bestow upon him the nickname of 'Dumbass'.

After Dumbass was knocked out, Brand continued to announce more names. His district partner, Winnie, was looking downward to hide her face from everyone around her. Most likely, she was trying to hide her tears. I doubt she wanted to imagine her twin brother dying with her. The two tributes from District Eight tried to hide their reactions as well, but were not nearly as successful. The boy, Xander, looked as if he was going to faint when the name of his sister was called out. His partner, Raven, started to cry when her best friend was mentioned. She tried to rub away her tears, but she couldn't: she couldn't stop herself from crying.

"Jason Icarus, the District Nine boy, will have his life linked to his best friend, Lacy." Brand continued, seemingly ignoring the crying District Eight girl.

The muscular, bulky District Nine boy, Jason, quickly brought his hands to his face and started to cry loudly. His reaction surprised me slightly. He was a volunteer and clearly the second-most muscular tribute here and he could easily take any of us on in a fist-fight. Despite this, the boy was crying loudly like the thirteen year old girl from District Eight sitting next to him.

The more time I spent in this room and the more I was exposed to all of these emotions, the sicker I felt. I shook my head, trying to resist any more feelings of sympathy. I couldn't sympathize with any of them anymore. I couldn't care for any of them! I had to be the one to get out of these Games. All of these twenty-three tributes had to die. Even if it meant that their loved ones died with them, then so be it. My parents and Aiden were more important than any of them!

Jason's district partner, Demetriana, after hearing that her life was connected to the life of her best friend, started to look frantically around the room. She was looking for something and she seemed desperate to find it. I was slightly curious about what she was trying to find, but that curiosity disappeared after the Head Gamemaker said the next name.

After he said the name of the District Ten boy's mother, the boy, Logan, actually smirked. My eyes narrowed on him. What kind of sick person would even smile at news like that? Slowly, I felt my fear disappear. My anger returned and filled my veins with a burning passion.

"I'm going to make sure that asshole dies…" I cursed under my breath.

The Head Gamemaker continued to go round the room to the remaining tributes. The girl from District Ten, Maddison, steeled her eyes upon hearing that her life was connected to her little brother's. She cracked her knuckles and seemed more determined than ever to win. Her reaction was a strong contrast to the reactions of the District Eleven tributes. Both of them had their lives tied to their fathers and each of them started to cry. The boy, Bane, had silent tears running down his face while the girl, Florina, cried loudly and hysterically.

My eyes then turned to their left to face my district partner. Yaro was watching the other tributes break down with a sad look in his eyes. He was also fidgeting in his chair nervously as he waited to hear who he was going to be linked to.

"The District Twelve boy, Yaro Hailstien, will be linked to the life of his best friend, Keever." Head Gamemaker Brand stated.

Yaro's head fell downward. The floor next to his chair started to darken in color as his tears hit the ground.

A part of me wanted to feel bad for him, but a realization quickly entered my mind. I'm next…

"Last but not least, we have Ms. Emery Aspen, the District Twelve female. Your life will be linked to your best friend's, Aiden." Brand stated.

_So, they are tying my life to yours, huh Aiden?_

I could feel my eyes narrow in anger. Tears started to roll down my eyes due to my rage. My fists tightened as I looked at the Head Gamemaker.

If I die, then Aiden will die with me. That was not going to happen. I was going to survive – for both of our sakes. I didn't care who I had to fight and kill: nobody was going to stop me from getting out of the arena and keeping my best friend alive.

**Yaro Hailstien's POV – District 12 Male**

Once the Head Gamemaker finished announcing the people that would die with us, we were all escorted back to our individual living quarters. Emery and I followed our peacekeeper escorts in silence, making no attempts to talk to each other. Normally, we would have some banter back-and-forth between us: I would say a joke about something and she would get mad at me for saying it. Right now, both of us were not in the mood. We were still dealing with the realization that if we died in the arena, our best friend would die with us…

I couldn't help but feel a little depressed as I thought about Keev. He was more than a best friend to me: he was like an older brother. My family took him in about six years ago after we became aware of the neglect and abuse he received at his own home. Since then, we became inseparable. We did everything together: from household chores to errands. We even, recently, started to work together. I became a coalminer the day I turned eighteen and got to work the past three months with him, my father, and my brother-in-law down in the mines.

Keev had been through so much in his life already. He didn't deserve this. No one did.

When I found out I was reaped for the Hunger Games, I didn't know how I was going to kill someone. The very thought of death disgusted me and I was too scared to even think of killing someone. Maybe subconsciously, I had accepted my own death. Now, however, I guess I was going to have to become a murderer no matter how awful the idea was.

As much as it sickened me, I had to become a killer. I had a family to get back to and I had best friend that I had to keep alive!

It didn't take too long for Emery and I to reach our living quarters. After walking back into the room, we were greeted by our district escort, Anya. The normally upbeat woman had a solemn look in her eyes as she looked at us.

"Are… Are you two okay?" She asked us softly.

"Don't talk to me!" Emery hissed in response.

Emery rushed forward, shoving Anya out of the way as she ran back to her room. The Capitol woman hit the ground rather hard. I shook my head slightly as my eyes focused on my district partner's retreating image. From the little bit I had gotten to know Emery since the reaping, she was a girl who did not really bottle up her emotions. She clearly held her anger in during the 'meeting' with the Head Gamemaker and now that she was away, she was finally able to let out her rage.

"She's madder than usual…" Anya noted as she stood up slowly. "Not that I can blame her though. I'd be just as mad as her if I was told that."

"So you do know what the meeting was about?" I questioned her.

"President Draven announced it on the television screen right after the two of you left for the meeting. After her finished the announcement, the screen started to show the live reactions of the tributes…" The escort said with a frown.

_Well that would explain the multiple video cameras_. The Capitol, naturally, had to try and exploit as much genuine emotions as they could.

"… How bad did I look on screen?" I asked, remembering how I tried to hide my tears.

"To be honest, all of you looked like a mess. Either all of you appeared depressed, angry, or robotic because you were trying to hide your emotions." Anya answered. A shiver then ran down her spine as she shook. "The only exception being the District Ten boy. God, what a psycho!"

"… So basically, most of us looked like crap?" I asked. She nodded in response, which caused me to laugh slightly. "Good to know I wasn't the only one."

"Is that really something to be laughing about?" Anya asked as surprise covered her face.

I shook my head in response. "Not really, but hey: I'll take any laugh right now. I could use a good joke. Do you have any?"

"Huh?" Anya looked me in confusion.

"Just tell me one good joke. Do you have one?" I continued to ask, a small smile gracing my lips.

"Well, um, if you insist…" The Capitol woman mumbled before a smile of her own appeared on her face. "Do you know how many peacekeepers it takes to change a light bulb?" She paused for dramatic effect before continuing. "Five. One to track the light bulb down, the second to interrogate it, the third to run a background check of it, the fourth to screw it in, and the fifth to take all of the credit."

"Heh, I heard one like that before!" I responded with a loud laugh. "I got one myself. Did you see the little boy from District Twelve playing with his friends? Didn't he _seam_ to be happy?"

"Ha! That was so lame, but really funny!" Anya actually laughed loudly in response. "How have I never heard that one before?"

"I got a million more like that." I replied, my smile turning into a grin.

Jokes were my expertise. From complicated inside jokes to jokes with dark humor to simple cheesy puns: I had several of them available for any situation. I had many ways to get someone to laugh. Watching someone laugh from one of my, admittedly, crappy jokes was something that would always make me smile.

"I'd love to hear more, but I think you should maybe go to bed. You have a busy day tomorrow with training and you can't afford to be even a little tired." Anya informed me. Her smile then faded as she looked at me with concern. "Yaro… are you okay though?"

My grin changed shape to a small, light smile. "Not really. But I'll be okay. You're right though: I should be heading to bed."

Anya and I bid each other goodnight before I left the room, heading towards my own personal bedroom. My eyes wandered the hallways of the living quarters with curiosity. Everything I saw still seemed so unreal and foreign to me. There was nothing here to remind me of home. All of my life, I grew up in the seam of District Twelve. To be here in the Capitol and see all of the technological advancements was astounding.

My curiosity ended when I finally reached the end of the hallway and saw the door to my bedroom. Standing directly in front of it was Emery. The girl had her arms crossed and she was glaring at me.

"I didn't realize you were still up!" I exclaimed in surprise.

"I was about to go to asleep, but then I heard your damn laugh all the way from my room." Emery responded with an eye roll. "You think you're so funny, don't you Joker?"

"What do you mean?" I asked in confusion. I ignored the 'Joker' comment and the malice that the word was coated in. It was simply the nickname she gave me. She gave nicknames to Anya, our mentors, and anyone she had an opinion about.

"Your fucking jokes! How the hell can you laugh at a time like this?" She hissed. "Were you not paying attention to that meeting? You have your best friend's life in your hands! What is so funny about this situation? What is there to laugh about?" Her eyes, seemingly, narrowed on me further. "Well?"

Immediately, I backed away from her and raised my hands up in defense. "No, no. Nothing is funny about this situation. You got it all wrong! Anya and I were just telling each other a few jokes."

"Still seems odd that you would even joke around at a time like this. This is serious business! I knew you were a joker, but can't you take even this seriously?" Emery asked me with an eye roll.

"I am taking this seriously, but being depressed about it isn't going to fix anything." I replied with a sigh.

Emery continued to glare at me, but I noticed a hint of confusion cross her face. I sighed again before I started to explain my thoughts to her.

"You're right: this situation is nothing to laugh about. My best friend's life is on the line and I'm afraid. I'm really, really afraid for him. District Twelve doesn't have the best track record for producing victors and I'm still coming to grips with the idea that I'm going to have to kill a few of these other kids here. There're a lot of things going on right now and I feel like absolute shit because of them, and I'm sure you do too." I told her. I forced a small smile onto my face before I continued. "I can't control any of the things going on around me. But one thing I can control is my attitude. If I go around acting depressed and if I let the Games affect me and my mind, then I will have already lost. If I let the Games change who I am, then I won't have the right mindset to pull through. I will die."

As I continued to talk, I felt my smile become more and more natural. "That is why I still 'laugh'. That is why I will keep telling jokes and smiling. I am taking this seriously, but I'm not going to let the Games change the one thing that I have control of. I am me and I will always be me. I am the guy who is Keev's best friend, and I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure that he stays alive!"

Emery said nothing as she closed her eyes in thought. She was probably processing everything that I said. It wasn't something I was sure she would understand. My concern was a personal one that I'm sure most tributes never thought much about. It was a given that the Games changed people, but I wasn't going to let it change who I was. Even if I walked away a killer, I would walk away still Yaro Hailstien.

It was probably naïve of me, but I really believed it. If I let the Capitol defeat me and change me into the person they wanted me to be, then I wasn't going to win. I could only win if I remained strong and stayed the same way I have always been.

"… whatever works for you I guess." Emery finally broke the silence with a sigh. "If that's how you see this whole thing, then fine. Go ahead and laugh. You won't see me joining you anytime soon."

"You never joined me in the first place. You always shoot down every joke I make!" I replied with a teasing grin on my face.

For the first time since I met her, I saw Emery smile. The girl's lips lifted ever so slightly and I could tell that she was amused.

"And until the arena starts, I will be here to shoot down every single one of them. They're all rather shitty anyway." She commented with a shrug.

"Hey, now that's a matter of opinion!" I retorted with a light chuckle.

"Nah, I'm pretty sure that's fact. Your jokes are shit." Emery stated, the smile still remaining on her lips.

A few seconds passed before Emery uncrossed her arms and started to walk away from me and my door.

"It's been a long day. We both need some sleep." She told me. "I'm going to bed."

"Yeah, I agree. I'll get some sleep myself." I noted with a yawn. "Goodnight Emery. Don't let the bed bugs bite."

"Ooh, I never heard that one before." Despite the fact that Emery was walking away from me and I couldn't see her face, I could tell she was rolling her eyes.

After saying goodnight, I walked through my door and prepared to go to sleep.

This whole experience had been long and draining since the reaping. Tonight was the worst day so far and it was probably going to get worse as it came closer to the beginning of the actual Hunger Games. Still, I made a conscious effort to remain as happy as I could be. I wasn't going to let the Capitol defeat me. I was going to beat them and the other tributes.

After a few hours of trying, I stared to fall asleep. As I felt myself start to relax, I made one sure to think of Keev and my family back home in District Twelve. All I could do was hope they were okay while I was out here…

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hey everyone! :) Here is the next chapter!

I thought I would put this down here as an easy reference for everyone. Here is the list of the 'loved ones' that have their lives tied to the lives of the tributes.

Ariail Bardineux's 'lover': Amorette

Kendra Perone's adoptive sister: Zelena

Lepolio Huang's son: Miall

Victoire McBlock's younger brother: Cameron

Ethan Neurus's father: Douglass

Kaylee Harper's 'lover': Harper

Cascade Bolt's older brother: Dylan

Alaska Dayte's younger brother: Oanou

Icarus Bolt's cousin: Tallie

Stephanie Volk's older brother: Orion

Booker Compton's father: Laurence

Alexandra Varas's mother: Sophia

Raegae Oak's younger brother: Sycamore

Winnie Goldstein's twin brother: Marvin

Xander Lugar's older sister: Amaya

Raven Bell's best friend: Caroline

Jason Icarus's best friend: Lacy

Demetriana "Demi" Walser's best friend: Kendra

Logan Faber's mother: Melissa

Maddison Holland's younger brother: Dustin

Bane Darnell's father: Laurentum

Florina Everett's father: Onyx

Yaro Hailstien's best friend: Keever

Emery Aspen's best friend: Aiden

I just thought a list might be appreciated in case anyone missed a name or two when reading the chapter. :)

So, there we have it everyone: all twenty-four tributes have been introduced! :) What did you all think of the last four here? Kendra? Ariail? Emery? Yaro? And now that you all know the tributes, who is your overall favorites? Your least favorites? I'm curious. Let me know in the reviews! :)

The next chapter will be out soon. We have a few more chapters until the actual Hunger Games. I'm getting so excited just waiting! :) I'll get to working on it as soon as I can. I'll see you all when I finish it! :)


	9. Training Day 1: Making an Impression

**Stephanie Volk's POV – District 5 Female**

"Stephanie, you're up this early?"

I turned my head away from the book in my hands and saw Minos, the District Five escort. The bald man walked into the sitting room of the living quarters while rubbing his eyes. He must have just woken up and was still tired.

"Good morning Minos." I greeted him with a smile. "And it's not that early. I've been up for a few hours now."

"Stephanie, it's five in the morning." He answered immediately in exasperation. "How long have you been up then?"

My eyes blinked in response. I had not paid attention to the time, but I had just assumed that it was later than that. _What time did I actually wake up?_

If I had to make an educated guess, I probably received no more than two hours of sleep. After the meeting with the Head Gamemaker, I was distraught. I cried for several hours last night in bed to myself. It took me forever to fall asleep and, even then, my sleep was plagued with nightmares. All I could think about in bed was Orion getting shot in the head by the peacekeepers just minutes after I died in the Hunger Games…

"I really don't know what time I woke up. I just had a little hard time falling asleep." I finally answered to the escort. I then raised the book in my hand upward. "I've been passing the time by studying."

Minos walked forward towards me. He then looked at the cover of the book and read it aloud: "'The Art of Swordsmanship?' Do you know how to use a sword Stephanie?"

"No, but I've always had an interest I thought it would be a good idea to start reviewing the concepts of the weapon before I started training with it." I replied nonchalantly as I looked for my place in the book. "I started reading it about an hour ago after I finished 'Alone in the Arena's Environment.'"

I made a small gesture, pointing to the aforementioned book. It was lying in a pile of books that I had set down next to my seat on the couch. The book was a decent read written by a victor from District Eight nearly a hundred years ago. Some of the information was dated, but a lot of the general theories were still applicable to most arenas in the Hunger Games. Atticus recommended the book to Icarus and I while on the train and I started reading it the second I could. Once I completed it, I formed a pile of books that I needed to read and understand thoroughly before the Games began.

Swordsmanship, general survival tips, general theory and uses of electricity and metal, tools that can be made out common materials in the cornucopia, different known species of muttations, and tips for improving one's stealth: there was a book for everything. Every second that I spent in the District Five living quarters was going to be focused solely on these books and learning as much information as I could. I was willing to do anything I could to make sure I was ready for the arena.

Last night showed me that I needed to study more. Dying wasn't the only consequence for losing the Games this time. Orion's life was dependent on me winning as well. Growing up, he was the one who really took care of me. Orion would always be there whenever I needed helping coming up with a new design for some random science experiment I was working on. He was the one who would be there if a few of the other district kids were bullying me. My brother had done so much for me, so now it was my turn to do something for him. I was going to make I was prepared for anything that could possibly come my way in the arena.

"You don't intend on reading all of those, do you? That's a lot of books!" Minos exclaimed as he looked at the pile. "You don't have enough time. That's overdoing it, isn't it?"

"No, it's fine. I'm a fast reader and I learn quick." I responded with a light smile. "That's what my teachers told me at least."

Minos frowned, but said nothing in response. He left the room, leaving me alone again. I proceeded to continue with my book.

Swords have always been fascinating to me. It was the primary weapon of knights in all of the little fairy tales and childhood stories I grew up hearing. As I read the book, I learned more about the usage of the sword and multiple styles of sword fighting that I could learn. I made sure to note the specifics of each of them. Once I actually started practicing with it, I could decide what style suited me best and I could focus on it.

Hours went by as I continued to read the book intently. I was about less than ten pages away from completing the book when I heard the door to the room open up again. I looked up and noticed that Icarus and Atticus were walking into the room.

"I feel like every time I see you Stephanie, you're reading some book. I don't remember the last time I saw you without one." Atticus noted with a chuckle. "Feels like we are still in District Five."

"What can I say? I'm a predictable girl with predictable hobbies." I giggled in response. The man knew me very well.

Atticus had been the best friend of my father since they were little kids. They had a long heart-to-heart conversation in the justice building the year Atticus was reaped for the Games. When he came back a victor, he and my father became closer than ever. To this day, they spent most of their time together. I've known Atticus my entire life as a result of this. He's the man who actually got me interested in experimentation and science in general! He was an extremely smart man who I knew would be able to help me do well in the Hunger Games, but it was also great to have him with me because it was a relief to just have someone from home here with me to talk and comfort me when I needed it.

"Based on the fact that 'Alone in the Arena's Environment' is in the pile to the side, is it safe for me to assume you finished it?" Atticus questioned.

"Yup." I nodded with a light smile gracing my lips. "I finished it a little earlier today."

"I see." The man nodded in understanding. "Icarus had just told me he finished reading it earlier today as well."

My eyes wandered to my district partner. Icarus nodded, acknowledging the statement. He was a very reserved person who didn't talk much. He seemed like a nice-enough person and he seemed much more intelligent than most people, but I really did not know much about him. All I knew was that apparently he attempted to flee to District Thirteen a year ago and that the peacekeepers and my father did not like him as a result.

"What did you think of the book Icarus?" I asked him.

"… A few of the general ideas seemed very rudimentary and slightly outdated due to changes made to the Hunger Games in the past twenty or so years. It was also a little too focused on the stereotypical 'forest' themed arena. Nevertheless, there were a lot of ideas in here made sense and will most likely help with survival in the arena." He answered in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

"That was what I was thinking." I replied. "The chapters on the gamemaker interference and muttations were the most interesting and the most applicable, in my opinion."

"I'd agree." Icarus nodded in agreement.

"Good to see you both took something out of that book." Atticus commented with a serious face. "I realize that some of the information is outdated, but it really is the best book out there that actually discusses arena survival. And I feel like it is a good basis of information before you start studying survival tips during training."

Atticus opened his mouth to speak up, but he stopped when Minos came into the room. The escort quickly ushered us to a dining table, where breakfast was served.

Capitol-styled breakfasts were odd to me. On one hand, the food was much more delicious than the food back home. I could also have as many servings and drinks as I wanted. At the same time, eating meals without my parents or Orion with me felt sad.

Breakfast was rather quiet, as usual. The four of us were rather quiet people for the most part. Not much conversation would occur at a table of introverts! We all sat down at the table and kept to ourselves as we ate our food. The silence would be occasionally be broken by Atticus or Minos, who would ask Icarus or me questions about our training plans. We would answer them before silence filled the table filled the table again.

After breakfast was finished, a group of avox came over and took away the used plates. It was at that moment that Minos looked at a clock in the room.

"Training will begin in around an hour. You both should get ready." He suggested.

Icarus immediately stood up and dismissed himself from the room. I quickly got up and then bid farewell to Atticus and the escort before heading back to my room.

I took a long, relaxing shower in the beautiful, gold-covered bathroom and proceeded to get dressed. I put on my glasses before I walked out to the main room. Icarus was already there, waiting by the entrance with Minos and Atticus.

"These next few days are going to be essential for you both. They can make or break your chances in the Games. This is where I learned to use a bow after all, which was probably the only reason I made it out of the arena alive." Atticus noted with a shiver. I frowned a little bit. He really did not like discussing his own Hunger Games and the mention of his Games, even if it was just stating what his weapon was, haunted him. I really did not like seeing my friend so upset.

"Learn everything you can. I know you both are doing your independent studies here with your books, but you need more hands-on training. You're two of the brightest kids I've ever seen, so I know you can learn. Learn as much as you can from the stations and the instructors in addition to your books here." Minos advised.

Both Icarus and I nodded. The books were merely supplements to give me a basis for the learning. The actual training stands and legitimate trial-and-error practices were going to be the most important sources for information.

A minute passed before Atticus escorted both Icarus and I to the elevator. He wished us luck before the elevator door opened. We told him goodbye before we walked inside the elevator. The doors quickly closed, leaving the two of us alone.

"… Are you nervous about this Icarus?" I asked a little awkwardly to my partner. Even though we had known each other for a few days, it felt like there was some sort of barrier between us.

"No." He answered immediately with no expression on his face.

My eyes widened as I looked at the boy in front of me with disbelief. "Really? Not even a little bit?"

"We aren't going into the arena. It's just training. Nothing will kill us today." Icarus explained with a slight shrug. "There's nothing to be worried about."

A frown developed on my face. Maybe not today, but many of the things in the training room could kill us. Any of the other tributes in the room could end up being our future murderers after all. Still, I couldn't help but envy Icarus's confidence. I wished I even had a fraction of it. Then again, he was the one who volunteered for the Games. It would make sense for him to at least be slightly confident in himself.

"I'm just nervous that I'm not going to learn something here during training that could potentially save my life in the arena." I told him with a sigh.

Icarus shook his head in response. "Don't think like that. Just focus on learning as much as you can. There's no way to predict what we are going to need to know for the arena, so just learn as much as you can and try to improve on your skills. You're smart enough to pick up on a few things."

I felt a smile develop on my face. I realized that he was most likely saying that to make me feel better, but I could tell that Icarus wasn't the emotionless robot that he appeared to be most of the time. He was, as I thought, a nice person.

"Thanks for the compliment." I said, my smiling growing a little wider.

Icarus gave me a small smile in response before he turned his head forward towards the elevator doors. We remained quiet for a few seconds until the elevator doors opened up. The two of us walked out, side by side.

We were one of the last districts to arrive to the training hall. Most of the other tributes were already there, surrounding a tall, skinny man with no hair. He wore tight white pants and a red shirt. The man was obviously from the Capitol, but he appeared rather 'normal' compared to most of the other Capitol citizens I had seen so far. He was looking at the tributes intently, as if he was judging us and our chances.

I felt myself gulp as Icarus and I joined the ranks of the other tributes. _This is it Stephanie! _From here on, I needed to be focused. Everything I do from here is going to impact whether I get home and whether Orion was going to die, and I was prepared to do anything to make sure that my brother stayed alive. It was now my turn to take care of him and make sure he was safe!

* * *

**Lepolio Huang's POV – District 2 Male**

Victoire and I were the last two tributes to arrive in the training hall. After we entered and joined the other tributes, the Capitol man in front started to speak to us.

"Good day tributes. My name is Thaddeus Singed, and I am one of the Gamemakers for this year's Hunger Games." The man introduced himself. "Although my role of expertise is focused on arena design, I was requested by Head Gamemaker Brand and President Draven to oversee your training for the Games this year. Now that all of you are here, I need you all to pay attention to me. I will not be repeating anything I say, so keep quiet and pay close attention."

"Any Hunger Games arena is dangerous. This one is going to be especially deadly for all of you. And in addition to everything designed in the arena, you will all be competing and trying to kill each other. We could throw you all in right now, but what fun would that be? I'm certain only a few of you would be able to survive past the first day." Gamemaker Singed commented with a slightly maniacal laugh. I made a note that, so far, the Gamemakers seemed more sadistic than I had imagined.

"To make the Games interesting for the people watching, we give you all these three training days. Here, you all can learn the skills to give you a fighting chance. You may learn how to use a weapon or you can learn survival skills, such as making a fire or figuring out which plants are edible. There are many stands and instructors here that can teach every one of you the information you will need to survive." He continued to explain. "Here, we don't have many rules. Interact with each other, sleep in the corner: I don't really care. It's your time. However, we do demand that you all not steal anything from the training room. We also ask that you all not try and kill each other here. You'll have plenty of time to kill each other in a few days. Both for now, we want all twenty-four of you in good condition and ready to fight in the arena. Do I make myself clear?"

My eyes wandered towards the rest of the tributes. I noticed a few of them were intimidated by the Gamemaker's speech. If they were afraid now, then I would assume from the knowledge of 'fear' that I had that they would most likely be even more scared when the Hunger Games began. _Good._ Anything to make the Games easier for me, the better.

"If you all understand me, then you all may begin training. Remember, this is the only time you will get. Make it count." Singed informed us sharply before he walked away from us towards the elevator.

A few seconds passed before most of the tributes dispersed throughout the room towards different stations to learn different things. I turned my head towards a fire-making station and began to walk towards it.

"Hey! Lepolio, Victoire, Cascade, Alaska, get over here!"

I turned around and saw that Ariail was walking towards me with his district partner, Kendra. I remained where I was as Victoire and the District Four tributes, Cascade and Alaska, walked in my direction.

"Is this about forming the Career alliance? Didn't you already ask us about this at the chariots?" Cascade questioned.

"Yes, this is." Ariail stated sharply.

"Then this is a waste of time. We have all confirmed we are in." I informed him bluntly with an eye roll an attempt to appear visibly irritated.

Ariail turned to glare at me. I simply shrugged in response. It was the truth, after all and if I wasn't emotionally stinted, I would probably actually be irritated. Any meeting we had now about the topic of the Career Pack was going to be a waste of time and I was not in the mood to waste any time here.

At the private meeting with the Head Gamemaker, I was informed that the Capitol would kill my son, Miall, if I died in the arena. A powerful feeling rushed through my veins in that moment and it hasn't faded in intensity yet. I was quite certain it was the emotion 'anger'.

My family meant everything to me. I worked hard to provide a good life for Kianna and our little twins, no matter how shady the jobs were I would do. I was willing to do anything to make sure they were taken care of and safe. I was ready to do anything to make sure nothing happened to Miall! I was already prepared to kill to come home and return to my family. After the announcement, I was filled with even more determination. I was now ready to _massacre_ all of my competition to make sure my son was safe.

"It's not a waste of time!" Ariail hissed, bringing my attention back from my thoughts. "This won't even be that long. I was just bringing all of us together to make sure we were all going to work together. I will be acting as leader of the Career Pack."

My eyebrows rose at that statement, but I remained quiet. None of the other careers said anything. Ariail was the only tribute who seemed to care about who was the leader and, therefore, it made sense that he was going to lead.

Personally, I was confused by Ariail's desire to lead. In most Hunger Games, the leader of the Career Pack does not win. Perhaps it was a title to boast about and flaunt during the pre-games and the early stages of the actual Hunger Games if the person actually cared about that stupid emotion called 'pride', but the title never amounted to much in the end. Based on all the previous Hunger Games that I had seen, the leader was the most likely to be targeted and die once the careers split apart. It was a foolish title to want and Ariail would most certainly join the list of other 'Career Leaders' who died at the hands of one his subordinates.

"… Heh. If none of you have anything to say, then I guess it's official. I will be the leader." Ariail commented with a smug grin. "Now, first thing's first: anyone who gets below an eight will be removed from the career pack."

"Wow, that'll be so hard to obtain. I don't think any of us, tributes who have spent the past few years of our lives devoting hours and hours to training, could actually earn an eight of all things." Kendra noted with over-exaggerated voice.

Ariail glared at her immediately. From the way he was looking at her, it appeared such comments from Kendra were common to hear. A few seconds went by before he stopped glaring and started to speak again.

"Second: I think we all should let each other know what type of weapons we use. It'd be best if we had all types of weapons covered. It would be rather troublesome if we all had to compete in the bloodbath for the exact same weapons." He said.

"True." Cascade commented with a sigh. "Well, I can use a sword and knife, but I'm a lot better at the spear."

Most tributes from District Four were. My eyes focused on Cascade in curiosity. I was curious about whether or not he was better at tossing his spears or using them as a melee weapon. I would have to observe him when he went to the spear training station. It would change how I fight him later in the arena and how I would try and kill him.

"I use knives, mostly." Alaska commented quietly.

Again, I wondered whether or not she was a melee fighter of if she preferred to fight at range. I would have to observe her as well.

"I'm good with a hatchet and pretty much any type of axe." Kendra stated with a confident smirk on her face.

Immediately, Cascade's eyes widened as he turned to face Kendra with a look that showed fear.

"You use axes?" He asked quickly.

Kendra gave him a confused look. "Is there a problem with that?"

"N-No. Of course not! None at all." The District Four boy responded quickly with an uneasy laugh. My eyes once again returned to study him. It appeared that he had a phobia of axes – or, more likely, axe users. That would definitely be something I would take advantage of during a fight with him. I made a note to visit the axe station and learn how to use the weapon at some point during the next three days.

"There better not be a problem over something that stupid." Ariail grumbled before he announced his own weapon. "I'm good with a katana and other types of swords in general."

"Likewise." I answered.

"Really?" The District One boy stared at me intently. I returned his gaze with my own.

The two of us studied each other intently. Ariail was most likely trying to see what type of swordsman I was. I was a muscular guy, so he most likely assumed that I would use a large broadsword. I doubt that he would guess that I had been trained in dual wielding katanas: one in each hand.

"… Interesting." He mumbled a few seconds later before turning to Victoire. "And you?"

"Long-ranged weapons in general. I'm familiar with throwing knives, the bow and arrow, and a whip. My preferred weapon, though, is a boomerang." My district partner answered politely.

"You mean that aboriginal weapon seen in movies?" Cascade questioned in confusion. "I didn't realize any career institute trained people on how to use those!"

Victoire giggled in response. "Well, I know how to use those too. However, my preferred boomerang is a different, more modern variant. You'll see in a little bit."

"Well, it looks like we all seem to know what we can do. Now, go practice. Intimidate a few other tributes, or whatever. Just make sure to train and learn any shit you don't already know. We don't want any weak careers!" Ariail informed us all with a hiss.

With that speech, the careers began to split apart. Alaska bolted as soon as she could in the direction of a station to learn how to tie knots. Cascade, Kendra, and Victoire quickly headed in the direction of the stations to practice with their own preferred weapon. I started to walk towards the fire-making station again.

"Lepolio!" Ariail called out to me. I turned around and looked at him in anticipation of his question. "You not going to go practice with the sword?"

"… I'm going to focus on survival. I'm comfortable with my knowledge of the sword." I answered curtly before I continued on my walk.

I did not want to really show off my skill, especially in front of Ariail. The more I talked to him, the more I learned about him. Kianna was a student of psychology and I learned quite a few things from her over the course of our relationship about the subject. I could already tell that Ariail had multiple signs of insecurity. Therefore, I didn't want him to see my skills. I had a sneaking suspicion that, if I outperformed him, he would get angry and would try to kill me early in the Games. I didn't want to have to kill him that early. For the first part of the Games, he would be a good asset as a leader to unify the Careers. It would be much later in the Games when I would decide to kill him.

With that in mind, I continued to walk over to the fire-making station. The District Nine boy and the District Eight girl were already there, attempting to make fire from a fire-making kit in separate areas. The two quickly noticed my presence and stared at me with wide eyes. I probably appeared like an anomaly to them. Most career tributes, after all, did not bother to actually focus on the survival stations.

I quickly grabbed a set of notecards from the station and read about the basics of the art. After a few minutes of studying, I grabbed my own fire-making kit and sat down. I then began to use the charcoal and wood to attempt to make fire.

A few minutes passed before I accomplished my task and started a small fire. The flames were warm and I knew in that moment that, if I was in the arena at night in the cold, I would be able to keep myself heated.

"That took him no time at all…" I heard the girl from District Eight mumble under her breath.

I gave no response and continued to work with the fire. I wanted to make sure I was able to make fire effortlessly before the station. Afterwards, I would head over to the knot tying area and practice working on traps. Once I finished there, I would head to the axe station and practice there to maybe exploit Cascade's fear.

I had a lot of preparations I needed to make before I headed out into the arena, but I was no concerned. Kianna had often told me that I was a fast learner. I never got bored: I simply remained focused and would get things accomplished. My 'fast-learning' would help me improve and develop in all of my skills.

I wasn't going to leave the training hall until I felt even more confident that I could kill any of the other tributes. My son was not going to die: the twenty-three tributes with me would die in his place.

* * *

**Demetriana "Demi" Walser's POV – District 9 Female**

As soon as the Gamemaker dismissed us, I walked over towards the scythe training session. There were so many different stations to learn from that it was slightly intimidating. I decided that I should start with something I was comfortable with and work my way from there.

The station attendant was friendly enough and quickly handed me a scythe to practice swinging with and directed me towards a few training mannequins and a few wooden blocks to practice cutting on. I gripped my scythe tightly as I walked towards the training area. It felt strange holding the weapon. For my entire life, the scythe was nothing more than a tool to use on the job in the grain fields. Now, it was my best shot at getting out of the arena. _I just hoped it was enough! _

With that thought in my mind, I quickly started to practice swinging the scythe at one of the mannequins.

Seconds turned to minutes, which eventually turned into an hour. I was breathing hard and sweating after spending so much time just attacking one mannequin. It was covered in cuts and tears from my scythe. The mannequins were all marked wear the vital spots of humans were and I noticed that each 'vital spot' on my mannequin were severely cut. There was no doubt in my mind that if the mannequin was a real person, they would've been dead a long time ago.

"Oh, another visitor to my station! Here's a scythe for you." The Capitol attendant at the station declared.

_Another scythe user?_ The scythe wasn't that common of a weapon to see in the Hunger Games. Only a handful of tributes from District Nine and Eleven ever seemed to use them. I quickly turned my head in curiosity to see who else chose the scythe as their main weapon.

Immediately, I regretted looking. There in front of me, grabbing the scythe from the station attendant, was the creepy boy from District Ten: Logan.

After that boy at my sister's party raped me, a guy who I had met before and I had assumed was a good person beforehand, I worked hard on studying and judging people. I wanted to make sure nothing like that happened to me again, so I made sure I had an accurate first impression of people I met in order to ensure I was never around someone who could potentially harm me. Logan, after one look at him, checked off many warnings on my mental list. I could tell that he was a repulsive human being and someone that needed to be avoided at all cost!

Logan walked past and faced a mannequin of his own. He then turned his head towards me and stared at me intently. Then, a face-splitting grin developed on his face.

_What… the… fuck?_ Never before has one person legitimately crept me out as badly as this boy has.

A few seconds passed before Logan turned his attention back to the mannequin. He quickly swung at the mannequin with such force and speed that the head was severed from the rest of the body. It hit the ground with a loud 'thump'. My eyes widened as they quickly turned in the direction of the head. They then faced Logan again, who was now staring at me with the same manic grin on his face.

It took me no time at all to understand his silent statement: Logan was making sure that I knew he could kill me at any given moment. It almost seemed as if he wanted to kill me right now!

After understanding his message, I quickly returned the scythe to the station attendant and started to walk off in no particular. I needed to get away from him. Being in Logan's presence for just a little longer than a minute unnerved me and showed me just how much skill I lacked with my scythe. It was terrifying to think that I was going to be in the arena with him in just a few days. He seemed to have some unhealthy desire to kill, and the Games haven't even started yet!

… _God I really need a drink now!_

"He's creepy, huh?" A voice spoke to me.

I quickly turned my head and noticed the District Eleven girl, Florina if I remembered correctly, standing to the side. She started to walk towards with me with a focused look on her eyes.

"I was watching him, because I wanted to learn more about the volunteers. I had a bad feeling about him when I saw him during the reaping, but it's like ten times worse now! He's just so creepy I can hardly stand it!" She exclaimed dramatically. "And his use of the scythe is just so aggressive. He's using it in a way most people don't. I'm surprised he even uses a scythe. He just seems to look like the type of guy who'd go for an axe or some other bigger, more intimidating weapon. You know what I mean?"

"… Huh?" I blinked in confusion.

When the girl had approached me, I assumed that it was going to be a brief little talk before we both went on our way. I hadn't expected her to have so much to say!

"Well, I guess. He looks like the kinda guys who would go for a bigger weapon I guess…" I mumbled after a few seconds of blinking. "But he seems good with it, so I guess that's why he's using it."

"Oh no doubt about it! He's definitely good. I mean look at him go!" Florina exclaimed.

I ignored that comment and simply looked forward at the girl. I did not want to imagine what else Logan was doing to that mannequin.

"Again, though, his fighting style is just too aggressive. He's too focused on attacking and nothing else. I doubt he could defend himself if someone was able to overpower him somehow." Florina stated sagely. Her eyes turned towards me and a smile developed on her face. "Your style was a lot more balanced. The way you gripped the scythe was great and it looked as if you could attack, defend, or retreat at any moment if you needed to. That's really good form! You were really good with it!"

I looked at her in surprise. _So she had been watching me train too?_

I didn't really know how accurate her assessment of me was. My skills didn't feel that special after watching Logan literally sever the head of the mannequin. I just didn't feel that special at all. Still, a compliment was a compliment and I had to acknowledge it. I didn't want to be rude or anything.

"Thanks." I respond with a smile.

"Don't thank me! I'm just saying what I noticed." Florina commented with a giggle before she held out her hand. "My name's Florina by the way. You're Demetriana, right?"

"Yeah, but you can call me Demi. That's what everyone I know calls me." I replied, shaking her hand.

"Demi! Ah, okay. That's a pretty cool nickname. Very fitting if you ask me! I'll make sure to remember that." She stated with a giggle, her smile growing even wider. "Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that your style was good and don't be intimidated by that creep. I kinda have a few things I need to do, so I'll see you later maybe. It was nice meeting you!"

After saying those words, Florina waved goodbye to me before she started to rush off towards some random survival station. I blinked in confusion, both at how fast she appeared and how quickly she left, before I simply shook my head with a sigh.

… _Well that happened. _

I started to walk away towards one of the other training stations in an attempt to forget about her. Florina seemed like a really sweet girl. She was really talkative and I could see her getting annoying over time, but I could tell that she was a nice girl. She also reminded me of myself back when I was her age: bright, cheerful, and friendly with a smile at nearly every minute. She was so similar to how I was that it actually kinda hurt…

Nowadays, I was a completely different person and, if she hoped to have any chance of survival, she was going to have to change too.

After a few more seconds, I approached a survival station filled with books and images of plants. Each plant was marked to identify certain qualities they had: in particular, whether they were poisonous or not.

I liked to consider myself familiar with nature and a bunch of the plants in it after working for years in the grain fields, but I didn't know everything. I quickly opened one of the books and started to review the list of poisonous plants.

I remained at the station alone for nearly a half-hour before I heard the footsteps of someone else approaching. I turned upward to see who it was and saw my district partner, Jason. He had an uneasy smile on his face as he approached me.

"Uh, hey Demi…" He greeted me awkwardly, rubbing his hand through his hair. "Learn anything so far?"

"I guess. Just brushing up on my knowledge of plants and stuff. Don't want to die from a poisonous plant, mushroom, or something like that after all." I commented with a light chuckle.

"Yeah, that would be kinda lame." Jason noted with a laugh. He quickly walked over and started to review the notebooks with me.

"What have you been studying?" I asked.

"I've been learning how to make a fire. It took me a long time, but I finally was able to get the basics down…" He mumbled in response. I noticed his eyes turn downward. "The boy from District Two walked over there and figured out how to make fire in about five or so minutes…"

I looked at him, dumbfounded. "That fast?"

He nodded, sighing lightly. "Uh huh. It actually bothered the girl from District Eight a lot. She was staring at him in shock and then had a disturbed look on her face for the rest of the time she was there."

"I can understand why. It's uncomfortable watching the other tributes and to see them doing really good at all of this stuff." I replied with a sigh of my own. "I was just at the scythe station with the boy from District Ten and he's good. Like scarily good." I could feel shivers going down my spine as I thought back to Logan. "He's going to be crazy competition. I wish he could've volunteered for another year or something."

At the mention of volunteering, I noticed Jason's shoulders start to slouch over. The small smile on his face quickly disappeared and was replaced with a very deep frown on his face. His eyes filled with tears and they looked forward in no particular direction and at nothing in particular.

The boy started to cry, placing his head down on the survival station. Guilt immediately rushed through my veins as I realized what I brought up. Jason had volunteered for the Hunger Games for that little twelve year old boy and had, in the back of his head, prepared for his eventual death. After hearing what the Hunger Games twist was and that he may have subsequently doomed the life of his best friend Lacy, he started to cry. He had cried all throughout last night and just generally seemed depressed at any given moment. This was the first time I had seen him all day not look depressed and I completely brought him back into that mood.

"I was just trying to do something good for someone… nothing ever good happens to anyone in the districts. Life is just awful. So I try and do something good and this happens…" Jason mumbled. He wasn't talking to me. He seemed to be talking to himself more than anything else. "Lacy's my best friend. She's had a hard life and doesn't deserve this… she can't die. She can't! But there's no way I'm going to win… I killed her… I fucking killed my best friend…"

_Good job Demi. Good fucking job…_

It took a few minutes before Jason's crying finally stopped. Once he finished, the boy picked up one of the books and started to review the list of poisonous plants. He still had a depressed look on his face and his eyes were still filled with tears, but I could tell there was a look of determination in his eyes.

Jason was a polite guy and a real gentleman who could never hurt a fly under normal circumstances. I felt confident in my judgment of him after getting to know him for the past few days. However, to save the life of his best friend, maybe he could go so far as to kill someone…

_Maybe he would be even willing to kill me?_

We made no attempt to speak to each other for the next few hours as we silently studied our own books. Our studies were only interrupted by the sound of a loud bell, signaling the required thirty-minute break for lunch. All of the other tributes quickly stopped what they were doing and walked towards an area of the training room filled with dining tables and trays of food.

Jason and I said nothing as we walked over there. From a distance, I quickly looked over the trays for any form of alcohol. I cursed when I saw that there was nothing here. There wasn't even one of those shitty beer cans from District Nine!

When I got back to the living quarters, I was going to need some of Einkorn's supply of Capitol whiskey, and I was probably going to need a ton of it. I needed however much it would take for me to blackout…

* * *

**Yaro Hailstien's POV – District 12 Male**

I was one of the last tributes to reach the dining area of the training hall. I grabbed a small tray of food – some bowl of pasta, a salad, and some energy drink. It was all healthy foods and filled with Capitol vitamins and other weird stuff to help make us strong during the training period. We had to be as healthy and able as possible when we entered the arena. Only then could we get weak and die, when it would be recorded and viewed by all of Panem…

After grabbing my tray of food, I looked around at the dining tables for a seat. I quickly found an open spot by my district partner, Emery. She was currently stuffing her face with a tuna sandwich. With a smile on my face, I approached her table.

It didn't take long for Emery to notice me approaching her. She groaned loudly as she saw me place my food down on the table.

"There were so many other seats that you could have picked, and you just had to pick the one to me." She grumbled.

I couldn't help but laugh at her frustration. "You sound so disappointed Emery. Why? How could you say or think that? I thought you liked me!" I exclaimed dramatically to her, making my voice sound as whiny as I possibly could. "I thought we were friends!"

"God dammit Joker! You know we aren't that close." She retorted immediately. Despite her comment, she had a small grin on her face that showed she was amused. I took that as a small victory. Finally, after days of trying, I was able to make my always-angry district partner laugh.

She was right, however. We honestly weren't that close at all. Emery and I were two entirely different people, both in personality and in our lives back in District Twelve. I was probably the type of person she would have hated if we had known each other back home. I know she wasn't a person I would normally try and be 'buddy-buddy' with. Despite this, we were the only people we had. I had gotten to know her slightly well in these past few days to know things about her character and, to be honest, she wasn't a bad person. Sure, she was easily-angered, crude, and definitely rude, but I knew that deep down, she was a good person.

'Friend' may not be the best word to describe her, but she was someone I could talk to. It was comforting to have that at least.

With that thought in mind, I simply laughed in response to her comment while I started to take a bite of my pasta. It wasn't as delicious as the other food from the Capitol I had already had, but it was still way better than anything I've ever eaten back in District Twelve.

Say what you will about the morals and ethics of the Capitol, but the people there really could cook some good food!

"So, how's your training going so far?" I asked casually after swallowing some of my pasta.

"Hmm? Good." Emery mumbled between bites of her sandwich. "Spent all of my trying out the different weapons here. Found out I'm pretty good with a spear, so I'm probably gonna try and get better with it."

"Cool!" I commented, whistling in approval. "I've just been working on knives so far. I'd like to think I'm not _too_ bad so far."

"Knives?" Emery looked at me in confusion. "Aren't you a miner? Couldn't you just use a pickaxe in the arena?"

"Heh! Hahaha! Now that was a good one! It's been a while since I've heard some good dark humor." I laughed rather loudly. A few seconds passed until I noticed that her face became more confused, which caused me to stop laughing. "… Wait, were you actually being serious?"

A scowl developed on her face. "Do I look like I'm kidding or something?"

"No. It just took me surprise. I thought most people realized this." I commented with a sigh. Emery started to glare at me, but she said nothing as she waited for me to continue. "Do you really think I'm the first miner to ever come into the Games? I'm not the first eighteen year old guy to enter the Games from our district and I won't be the last. We could easily use a pickaxe and kick some butt with a weapon that we've been training with, but that'd never happen. The Gamemakers would never let that happen."

"And why do you think that?" Emery's glare vanished and she simply looked at me in confusion.

I leaned closer to her and whispered the answer into her ear, making sure that no potential video recorder could hear me. "The Capitol is biased against District Twelve. They don't want to be too blatant with their rigging, but they'll try and make sure we don't have many advantages. There will never be a pickaxe in any arena. They don't want to risk a miner getting it and potentially winning."

"… And why do you think that?" She questioned.

"I honestly have no clue. Probably something to do with those rumors of rebellion from the Third Quarter Quell." I responded with a sigh. "But just think about it: ever since the Third Quarter Quell and the time of Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, how many victors have won from District Twelve? Just one: our lovely, morphling addicted mentor, Donovan Richter. I know District Twelve has a bad record with Hunger Games tributes, but still! There's only been one victor in the past seventy-five years? I call bullshit."

A sick look appeared on Emery's face as she quickly put her sandwich down. She was most likely not hungry. She had probably never thought about anything like this. I learned that she was the daughter of merchants and, therefore, never had to apply for tesserae. She most likely never had a reason to think about the Games and things that go on in them like someone like me: someone who had to deal with the fear of going into the arena for years.

It took her a few seconds before she finally spoke up in a quiet tone-of-voice. "So… this whole training is all for naught, is it? The Capitol is just going to make sure we die at some point…"

"Who said this was all for naught?" I questioned with a small chuckle. "All I said was that the Capitol was biased and was going to try and make sure we lost. Doesn't mean we can't still win. Donovan came home a victor, and so can we. We just need to get good enough that we can fight despite the blatant rigging!"

Emery said nothing: she remained in silence for a few seconds. Finally, her silence stopped as she jabbed me lightly in the shoulder.

"You're gonna give me a mood-whiplash. Are you trying to depress me with a conspiracy theory or motivate me?" She asked with a laugh.

"Both. I don't know. Whatever works best for you." I replied, still laughing to myself.

Conversation died from there as we quickly finished eating. We only had a few more minutes on the clock before we were able to return to the training stations and start practicing again.

I had a long list of things I needed to learn at some point either today or during the next two days. I needed to learn how to make a fire and maintain in. I needed to figure out how to make basic traps and how to avoid the traps of others. I needed to know what types of plants were poisonous and I needed to learn basic information on mutts. I also needed to improve on my own athletic abilities and improve on my skills with the knife.

… I had way too many plans. These next few days were going to be so busy. So much to do, so little time.

"Hey, District Twelve tributes!" A voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

Emery and I turned to face the source of the voice. A lanky girl with olive skin and black hair approached us with a smirk on her face. I recognized her immediately as the girl from District Three. Kaylee, I think her name was?

"Hello." I greeted politely with a smile.

"What do you do want, District Three?" Emery grumbled at the same time as my greeting.

Kaylee glared at Emery in response. "Don't want me here, do you? Fine, I'll just cut to the chase and make this brief. Do the two of you want an alliance?"

"… Huh?" Emery and I blinked in surprise at her request.

Most tributes didn't align with District Twelve tributes. As unfair as the stereotype was, we were normally seen as bloodbath fodder. To other tributes, District Twelve was seen as nothing more than deadweight. Donovan mentioned that to us before we entered the training hall to not get our hopes up about receiving an alliance from someone else. Hearing Kaylee speak to us, requesting an alliance, was a direct contradiction from his advice.

"You want to ally with us?" I questioned, more to myself than to her.

"Yes." She nodded. "Well, a better way to put it I guess would be that I would like to make an agreement with you two. A business contract, if you will."

I felt a little on edge at her word-choice. I could tell Emery felt similarly to me, as I noticed her stiffen.

"… and what would a 'business contract' mean to you?" I questioned again, using her words.

"Tributes need to stick together. It's the primary reason why the Career Pack produces victors. There's strength in numbers, after all." She noted casually, as if she was stating an obvious fact. "You two want a chance to actually win, right? If you do, it would make sense if we formed our own alliance and worked to fight against the careers and other tributes."

She had a point. One of the major benefits the careers had was that, for the first half of the Games, they worked together. If they were a concise group, it would be nearly impossible to beat them. They would protect each other against any possible threat. There was strength, and safety, in numbers.

"Yeah, you're right. We could use a few good allies or so." Emery commented with a glare at the girl. "But what makes you think we'd want an alliance with you, Business?"

"'Business?'" Kaylee repeated the word with a glare. "What kind of name is that? Are you trying to mock me?"

_Yes. She is._ I couldn't help but shake my head. Emery was a natural at pissing people off when they first met her. At this point, I thought it had to be some sort of sick, twisted game she liked to play: to see how fast it would take to enrage each person she met. She had managed to do that to this girl, who was offering us an alliance, with just one sentence and one rather crappy nickname.

_Was 'Business' really the most creative nickname she could come up with anyway Emery?_

"I don't know. You can tell me I guess. You think you're so smart after all. Probably just because you're from District Three or something." Emery continued, rolling her eyes slightly.

_Oh God why..._ Emery, somehow, was making this even worse.

"Really now?" Kaylee's glare intensified. "And you think you know me too, just after a few seconds? All because I'm offering you an alliance? Are you actually this stupid? Most people don't have the nerve to backtalk someone who's actually offering to help and work with them."

I put my head in my hands, shaking it slightly. Kaylee had a temper too, it seemed. It also seemed like she wasn't the type of person to tolerate any of her issues. Any conversation between her and Emery was destined to be a disaster.

"Last time I checked, you were the one approaching us. You were asking for help, not us. Looks to me like you're the one who needs the help." Emery stated.

"Forgive me for trying to be strategic and find allies. I don't know about you, but I have no intention of being hunted down by the careers alone. I'm actually trying to win and keep someone back home alive. You do know that, right? When you're off alone without an alliance, you're just going to die alone and kill off your little friend with you." Kaylee replied with a condescending look on her eyes.

Before the conversation could escalate any further, the loud bell rang off, signaling the end of the lunch break. The other twenty-one tributes quickly left the tables and hurried off to the training stations to continue with their studying.

"Well, looks like we don't have much time right now to continue this. We'll talk about an alliance later. And I know we will, because you'll probably bring it up again later. You look like the type of bitch who always needs to have the last word. And by the way, I do know that my friend's life is linked to mine. Don't you ever fucking bring him up in front of me again!" Emery commented with a huff as she started to march forward away from the table towards the spear training station.

Kaylee and I watched her leave. I frowned at her anger, shaking my head slightly.

"… damn brat." Kaylee cursed to herself, still visibly angry.

"She's just an angry person in general when she meets someone for the first time. She'll calm down in a little bit." I informed her in an attempt to calm her down. "She's actually kinda nice when you get to know her."

"Doubt it." She commented rather bitterly as she continued to stare angrily at Emery's retreating figure. "People don't change. Mankind will always remain the same, no matter what. Nothing will change with her. She's a dumbass who will die alone in the arena."

A shiver went down my spine. Her comment was filled with a lot of anger that I could tell was based on personal experience. She obviously had some story to tell and I couldn't help but be interested. Maybe one day I would be able to hear it?

"I'm being serious. She'll be nicer in a little bit after some time to get to know you. That's how she is with everyone she meets." I reassured her. "But for now, I'd like to agree to your 'business contract'. We're willing to work with you."

Kaylee's eyes quickly turned to face me. She sized me up again before she simply nodded in response.

"I figured. I don't really know if your dumbass district partner will agree to that decision, but I'm in. At the very least, you look competent. We'll make a good team." She commented with a smirk.

With those words, Kaylee started to walk off. "Get back to training. We got a lot of things we need to be ready for before we enter the arena."

I nodded in agreement before I started to walk off as well towards the fire-starting station.

I didn't really trust Kaylee. Heck, I didn't know if I could trust Emery later in the Games if she ended up actually joining this allinace. However, I needed to make sure I lived. I was willing to work with anyone in order to ensure my survival. Keev's life was on the life with mine and I was going to do my best to make sure I came back home and keep him alive!

With that thought, I hurried over to the survival station to learn how to make fire.

* * *

**Raegae Oak's POV – District 7 Male**

"So, how about you and me girl? We'd make a killer alliance!" I told the District Six girl with a smirk on my face.

"No." She replied simply as she started to walk off.

"Ah come on! We really would make a damn good team!" I called out to her. "Alex, wait!"

"I already said no once. This is the second time, so take the hint and fuck off." She hissed, not even turning her head to look back at me. "And my name's Alexandra. Get it right next time!"

"Yeah, well you can go fuck yourself too." I shouted back at her, raising my middle finger in response.

The District Six girl, _Alexandra_ I guess, wasn't the first person to turn down an alliance with me. After the lunch break, I walked over to the girl from District Nine. She turned me down and quickly rushed away to some station to learn about mutts. After her was the girl from District Eleven. She ran away before I could even say a damn word to her.

Not a single person was interested in allying with me. Hell, I even tried to ask that boy from District Eight. Even he, the wimp that threw up after his reaping, didn't want to ally with me.

From what I noticed, all the tributes seemed to avoid me and/or looked down at me for reaction yesterday at the announcement. I didn't get it at all. I wasn't the only one to call out the damn Head Gamemaker out on his bullshit. Besides, everyone was thinking it as well. I was the only one who had the balls to actually point it out to him. So why the fuck was everyone so judgmental about me doing what they couldn't do?

I felt an anger rush through my body. I had to do something to alleviate it. Anything would do!

Normally, when I was angry, I would normally pull a prank on somebody. A quick laugh would normally make me feel better. However, I couldn't do that here. Most people were humorless bores who wouldn't get my sense of humor and would find it 'offensive'. Normally I wouldn't care what someone else thought of me, but I was about to go into an arena in a fight-to-the-death with everyone else. I didn't want to make too many enemies early in the Games. The last thing I wanted was to be targeted in the bloodbath!

With that in mind, I quickly made my way towards the martial arts station. A few instructors were already there, offering themselves as sparring partners to anyone who wanted a fight.

And I wanted a fight! I needed to beat up something and release at least a little bit of my anger!

"Pick anyone you want to fight." The main attendant at the station told me as she pointed to all the potential sparring partners. "The only one you can't fight right now is Dominic, obviously."

She pointed towards a man who I assumed was Dominic. I turned to look at him and realized that he was already sparring with another tribute – the muscular boy from District Six. I can't say I knew much about any of the tributes except for Winnie, but the Six boy was probably the only guy that I had any form of respect for. He seemed to hate his district partner, _Alexandra_, who I was currently rather pissed off at for declining my alliance. He also was one of the few to call out Head Gamemaker Brand out on the bullshit from the night before. Maybe my opinion would change later, but for now, I respected the guy.

Maybe if I were in a better mood, I'd approach him with the offer for an alliance. But right now, after being rejected four fucking times, I wasn't in the mood. All I wanted to do was punch something.

"You." I pointed towards one of the instructors. I then pointed my finger back at me. "Me." I then brought a fist together against the palm of my other hand. "Let's rumble, shithead."

I noticed the instructor's eyebrow rose in irritation, but he nodded slightly and walked forward to an open mat. We stood across from each other and bowed before he got into a fighting stance. I slipped into my own personal, more relaxed state.

In the little time that I had been homeless, I had gotten into a few street fights with a couple other people. Whether they were fellow guys who were trying to take my turf, a few dicks from local bars, or just some people who didn't think I was funny, I would always get into a fist-fight with someone at least once or twice a week. Fighting wasn't going to be an issue – it was something I was used to and something I was going to excel at.

My sparring partner made the first move, rushing at me. I quickly avoid a punch and delivered a kick straight to his chest, knocking him back slightly. As he tried to recover, I rushed forward and started to punch. He blocked my attacks, but I continued punching aggressively.

This whole Hunger Games experience has been pissing me off. I didn't want to get reaped. I didn't want to be stuck in a god-awful tree costume in the chariots and get myself embarrassed in front of potential sponsors. I didn't want to have Sycamore, the only person that actually cared about me, be tied to me and die with me if I somehow died in the arena. I didn't want to be knocked unconscious by the peacekeepers because I got rightfully pissed off after hearing about my brother. I didn't want to be ignored and rejected by all of the other tributes for suggesting alliances.

I was fucking sick of all of this!

I channeled my rage into my fists as I continued to pummel at my sparring partner.

* * *

I remained at the martial arts station for the rest of the training day. I literally beat the shit out of every single instructor there. Some people would consider it a waste of time to devote all of my time at one station, but I didn't see it that way. That was therapeutic.

For the first time since I was reaped, I felt slightly relieved. I was able to work out some of the anger that had been building since then and it felt nice to have some of it off my shoulders.

Once the day was over, I walked over to the elevator slowly. The never-ending sparring had worn me out and I was going to be sore for a while. I knew I was going to have to ask Autumn, one of the mentors, or maybe an avox for some medication to alleviate the pain.

When I reached the elevator, I noticed Winnie was standing there, waiting impatiently. We both had to go up the elevator at the same time. The district partners could only separate during the training sessions and in the living quarters. Otherwise, we needed to be together nearly twenty-four seven.

"What's up squirt?" I called out to her with a laugh. "Get any good training in?"

"… Maybe." She mumbled back in response with an eye roll.

As I walked forward, I studied Winnie for the first time since I was reaped. She really looked like an entirely different person. On the train, she had mentioned that she hoped to add a few pounds on her body before going into the arena. Looking at her now, I can say she did that. She no longer looked like the skinny, fragile thing that she originally was. Still, she didn't look too intimidating. No matter how much she tried, Winnie would never intimidate a single person. She was just too young and was still too damn little to actually be a threat in the Games.

"'Maybe?'" I repeated the word she used with an eye roll as we both got into the elevator. We then started our ascent back to the District Seven living quarters. "And that would mean what?"

"None of your business." She replied matter-of-factly.

"Ah come on Winnie. Don't be like that." I replied with a frown. "You know, the two of us could be a good team."

"… Huh?" She blinked in surprise.

"Yeah, you and me as allies. We wouldn't be the strangest alliance ever." I informed her with a laugh.

Winnie and I, no matter how different we were, were district partners. It was not unusual at all for district partners to work together in the Hunger Games. Winnie wasn't an ideal partner for me, but I was desperate for an ally. I'd take what I could get! Besides, she was a weak, little twelve-year old girl. Later in the Games when we had to break our alliance, I could kill her off without too much difficulty.

The girl closed her eyes in thought. Judging from her reaction, I could tell that I was probably the first person to approach her with the idea. For the time, it looked like someone was actually considering an alliance!

"We would totally kick ass!" I stated excitedly, trying to encourage her further. "Just think of me like a big brother. Nothing would ever bring you any harm!"

I was actually being honest when I said that: just not to her. Ever since he was born, I've been looking out for Sycamore. He's a bit of a brown-noser and has can definitely act like a typical brat his age, but he did understand me. He was a legitimately nice person, something you didn't see in Panem often. I had made it my duty to look after him and make sure he was okay, even when our fucking horrible parents kicked me out.

I didn't care if the Gamemakers linked his life to mine, nothing was going to change the fact that I would always be looking out for Sycamore. I didn't care if I had to kill a few other snot-nosed brats to make sure he was safe: I was willing to do anything for him.

"No." Winnie's answer interrupted my thoughts.

My eyes widened at the reaction as I studied Winnie. The girl was glaring at me, her anger very visible to me. I didn't imagine a girl her age could look at someone with such rage.

It was actually pissing me off.

"What'd you say?" I asked quietly.

"I don't need an 'older brother'. I never have and, to this day, I don't." Winnie informed me sharply.

"Fine, then don't consider me an older brother. Think of me as a just some random-of-the-mill tribute, allying with you." I informed her with an eye roll.

"No I won't, because we aren't allying with each other." She stated, her glare intensifying somehow. "I don't need anyone in the arena."

"… You're shitting me, right?" I tightened my fists. "You're fucking twelve years old. What the hell can you do by yourself?"

"You'd be surprised. You'd be very, very surprised. I've had to do a lot of things to survive living on the streets Raegae. Anything you can offer me, I already have. I don't need help from an older boy like you." She replied.

After her announcement, the elevator door opened up. Winnie noticed it immediately and ran out quickly.

_That… fucking… brat!_

I stormed out of the elevator and rushed to my room, saying nothing to my mentors or Autumn in the main room. Normally I'd try and harass the mentors. Or maybe I'd try to hit on Autumn and maybe convince her to finally sleep with me. Right now, though, I wasn't in the mood. I didn't care. I slammed the door to my room loudly, making sure everyone in the living quarters could hear it before I jumped onto my bed.

Even _Winnie,_ my district partner, wasn't willing to align with me! And she had to say it in the most condescending way possible…

"You know what? Fuck it!" I cursed loudly as I slammed my fist into my bed. "I don't need allies. I don't need any of them, especially Winnie. I can win this damn shit by myself!"

There were many victors who won by themselves. Many of them had actually come from District Seven. Soon, my name would be added to that list. I was going to come out of the Hunger Games a victor and I'd make sure I did it on my own. None of the other tributes, _especially_ not a fucking squirt like Winnie, was going to stop me from doing just that!

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! :) Here is the next chapter! :D

So yeah, just a note about the next few chapters: there's going to be four more chapters of the pre-arena. Each chapter will have five points-of-view in each one, giving all the remaining tributes one more point-of-view, plus one...gamemaker point-of-view that'll you read about later! :P You'll see in time.

However, only four more chapters of pre-arena, one more lead-up chapter right before the Games, then the bloodbath will begin. Six chapters from now, the bloodbath will be here. I'm actually nervous to get there! Nervous, but excited. I really can't wait so show you all my plans! :)

So, what do you all think of this training chapter? Any opinions of characters change? Let me know what you all think of everyone and everything that happened!

The next chapter is under-works as we speak. I will you see all when I finish! :)


	10. Training Day 2: Making a Name

**Ariail Bardineux's POV – District 1 Male**

After eating breakfast and getting ready for the day, I walked outside to the balcony of the living quarters. I had a few minutes to kill before Kendra was ready for training. It was the perfect time for a smoke break. With that in mind, I pulled out a cigarette from a case in my pocket, lit it, and then put it in my mouth.

Smoking was, to my surprise, much more controlled in the Capitol than I thought would have been. Maybe it was easier in other places, but it was definitely regulated on the train and in the training facilities. Then again, that might have to do with my idiotic district escort. Royal, always the dumbass, was disgusted by smoking. Once he realized that I was a smoker, he informed me of multiple regulations, allowing me to smoke only outdoors and in environments when I was by myself and away from him.

Originally, I had lashed out at the fool for trying to control me. Now, though, I made a conscious effort to follow his regulations without a complaint, no matter how stupid they seemed to be. Royal had connections and I wanted as many sponsors as I could get. I wanted to make sure that they were _my_ sponsors: not the sponsors for the Career Pack. At some point, the alliance was going to end and I would be by myself, so I needed to make sure I had support for that point of the Hunger Games.

I had to make sure I lived. For Amorette…

A part of me wanted to not care for her. She was the bitch who turned me away after my father kicked me out of the house. However, I knew that I had turned away from her when she announced her pregnancy to me. Her anger was justified and I probably deserved her rejection. It was all a giant shame, actually. We were the only people who truly understood each other, and we parted in such a negative way.

_Bah_. Going into the Hunger Games was a lot easier to deal with when I was only fighting for myself and the 'excitement' the Games would bring to my life. Now, I had to be concerned about Amorette… and the life of her child…

I continued smoking outside until I heard a loud knock on the balcony door. I quickly breathed out the last bit of smoke from the cigarette before disposing it in an ash tray on the balcony. I then walked back inside and was greeted by Kendra. The girl had a scowl on her face as she stared at me.

"Were you smoking?" She questioned with an eye roll.

"Yeah." I replied with a glare. "What's it to you? I can do whatever I want on my own time!"

"It doesn't mean anything to me. Just I've noticed you smoke at least a few cigarettes each day. It kinda looks like you're addicted." Kendra commented nonchalantly. A devious smirk crossed her face. "I wonder if you'll have any withdrawal symptoms in the arena."

"Hell no." I responded as I quickly pulled out a small, blue pill from a pocket in my pants.

Kendra's eyes nodded in understanding. The pill was a Capitol invention due to the high-amount of smoking. It was designed to alleviate the damages of smoking and help anyone who was struggling with an addiction. Taking one pill a day whenever withdrawal symptoms started to appear relieved the symptoms of withdrawal for that day. The person may develop a dependency to the pills, but it was better them than cigarettes if they were really trying to combat the addiction.

I wasn't going to deny that I was addicted to cigarettes. I probably also had a couple of other addictions to a variety of drugs that I've gotten my hands on back home in District One. However, thanks to Capitol medication, I was not going to have to worry about withdrawal in the arena.

"You're going to be dependent on those pills it seems. It'd be a shame if you didn't receive them in the arena." Kendra commented in the same nonchalant tone-of-voice.

"We're the careers. I'm sure my pills aren't going to be hard to get with all the sponsorships we're going to have." I answered with an eye roll.

"Hmm… I guess." Kendra mumbled in response. "Still, it's funny that the leader of the Career Pack is going to be need some medication in order to survive."

We walked towards the elevator and clicked on a button. While we waited for the elevator, I couldn't help but glare at the girl in front of me. Kendra had absolutely no respect for me. She went out of her way to antagonize. It was as if it was some game to her to try and piss me off.

If that was her goal, then she was definitely succeeding. Kendra bothered me a lot and I hoped that her attitude wasn't going to affect the other members of the Career Pack. I did care a lot about my image and how other people viewed me. I could give a rat's ass if somebody thought I was 'nice' or something like that, but I did want others to look at me with respect and acknowledgment. I was going to be the leader of the Careers and I wanted to be seen and respected as such. I certainly did not want to be looked as somebody unworthy of that respect.

If she doesn't change her attitude, I would make sure I prioritized her during the Career break-up. She was going to die at some point for all of the stupid bullshit she constantly said to me. I already knew I was not going to be upset when she died. If anything, I was looking forward to the day when I could look up into the night sky and know that she was dead. All I hoped for was that I was the one to end her life.

The elevator doors opened up after a brief period of waiting and Kendra and I entered it. The doors closed and we began our descent towards the training hall.

"So, we didn't talk much about this yesterday, but what did you think of the other tributes?" Kendra asked me.

I gave her a small nod of approval at her question. The only thing I could say that I honestly respected about Kendra was that she was analytical. I had no patience for imbeciles and while she was a dumbass in standard conversation, she was at least intelligent outside of conversation. She was always observing the people around her. She was smart, meaning I didn't have to worry about her holding back the careers. She would prioritize strong targets and prove her strength to the audience. Kendra was going to be a very useful tool for the early game…

"Besides our partners in the Career Pack, the main threats appear to be Logan, the boy from District Ten, and Booker and Alexandra, both tributes from District Six." I responded to her question. "Logan appears to be extremely brutal in his fighting style and we'll need to exercise caution around him. Booker seems to be capable at most weapons and hand-to-hand combat and would be a major threat in a fight. And I watched Alexandra run through one of the obstacle courses in the training hall and she is clearly the fastest tribute here. Those are the three that stood out the most to me."

"I would agree with that." Kendra nodded in agreement.

"Did you have any others you noticed?" I questioned out of curiosity.

Kendra stayed quiet for a few seconds before she started to speak up. "… Actually, I have another name to add: Bane."

I closed my eyes in thought as I tried to imagine who 'Bane' was. Quickly, the face of the crying boy from District Eleven entered my mind. I opened my eyes and stared at Kendra in surprise.

"Him? What's so concerning about him?" I immediately demanded.

"It's hard to put into words. There's just something… off-putting about him." She mumbled in explanation. "I saw him a lot yesterday. He was watching everyone and seemed to be studying everybody."

"That's what most tributes do. We all study the other tributes at some point." I countered, my stare turning into a glare. _That_ was what she was basing her concern on? "By that logic, his district partner, an even bigger crybaby than him, should also be in the running as a potential threat. I saw her everywhere, studying all of us."

"Yeah, I know, I know. It's just… there's something about him and his presence that's bothering me." Kendra replied. "For the briefest of moments, the fear and tears disappear from his eyes and I see traces of determination that you don't normally see in a scared kid like him. It's hard to explain, but I really think there's more to him than we see at first glance."

The elevator doors opened up at that point, letting us out into the training hall.

"Well, be concerned about him all you want. I don't really care. If he's worth something, he'll prove it in the gamemaker session and get a good score. Otherwise, don't worry about him." I told her as I walked out of the elevator. "Go and train."

"Yeah, yeah. Gotcha." She replied sarcastically. Even though my back was turned, I could tell she was rolling her eyes at me.

My eyes quickly wandered the training hall, looking for the other tributes. We were one of the first groups to enter the training hall. Only the tributes from District Two, Five, and Eight were here before us.

The boy from District Eight was at the knot-tying area, trying to learn how to make some type of trap. His district partner was at a small stand, practicing her skill with a slingshot. The boy from District Five was currently at a station learning how to make fire.

I noticed Victoire was working at a station with a large crossblade that she swung at a few targets. She threw the blade, which quickly returned to her after slicing a few wooden targets in half. That must have been her 'modern' boomerang.

My eyes went towards the sword training area. The girl from District Five was there, practicing with her sword. Lepolio, on the other hand, was not. I began looking for him immediately and spotted him at a station that focused on medicinal herbs and poisons. He was reading a few books and charts with no visible emotion in his eyes.

There was something that really bothered me about Lepolio. Originally, I was concerned about him, Alaska, and Cascade because they were not volunteers. Now, I was concerned about Lepolio for different reasons. He was the only person I had no true read on. I could look at the other tributes and come up with some brief description of what I thought they were like. I couldn't do with Lepolio, and that intimidated me a lot.

It didn't help that he felt he was already skilled enough to not need to practice his swordsmanship. Perhaps it was arrogance. There was a strong chance it was. However, Lepolio wasn't a volunteer: he was reaped. For him to be _that_ confident in his swordsmanship made me think he was being truthful, and that thought concerned me a lot.

… _I'm wasting time_. I shouldn't care about Lepolio's strengths now. For now, he would be a tool to help me during the Hunger Games as a member of my Career Pack. It would help, actually, if he was as strong as he thinks he is. If he deflected some attention away from me, then that would be great. For now, though, I wasn't going to concern myself with him. I was going to focus only on me and my training.

With that thought, I rushed over to the sword training area. I quickly received a katana from the station attendant and walked over to the training dummies.

I noticed the girl from District Five panting hard after her constant practice. She was here yesterday and she appeared to be getting stronger. Still, she was too weak. If this was the peak of her strength, then she stood no chance against me.

I walked by her, brushing my shoulder against hers rather roughly. She was knocked over slightly and I heard her gasp in surprise. After making my way past her, I walked towards a machine that was able to produce digital images that represented human targets. I pressed a few buttons on the screen before the machine started to glow. The area immediately around the machine was filled with holographic images of humans. All of them were holding their own swords and they were all poised to attack.

I gripped my sword tightly, waiting for the movement of the holograms. This was how it was going to be in the actual Hunger Games. The other twenty-three tributes were going to try and fight me, but no matter how hard they tried, I was going to win. I was going to kill them all and come back home a victor. Amorette would be safe and I was going to come home to enjoy the life of a victor.

* * *

**Alaska Dayte's POV – District 4 Female**

After the elevator doors opened to the training hall, Cascade and I quickly went our separate ways. There was still a lot of animosity from our first meeting other during the train ride. It seemed as if nothing was going to change that. Cascade was the kind of kid who held grudges, and I wasn't particularly interested in befriending him anyway. The longer we stayed apart, the better in my opinion!

I walked in the direction of the knot-tying station. Yesterday, I had gone there early in the day as a refresher of the art. Back when my father was alive, I had helped him tie his fishing nets and other equipment that he used on the fishing boats. It was now three years since he and mother died, but I still remembered most of the principles of knot tying. At the training station, though, I learned of a lot of different ways to improve on the art. I could make really complicated traps that would be able to catch almost any tribute. With just a little bit more training in the art, I could become the perfect trapper.

The station attendant greeted me immediately, recognizing me from the day before. I then took a seat next to the boy from District Eight, Xander Lugar if I remember correctly from the reaping video. The little chubby boy was working quietly on a few basic traps involving some rope and wire. I made a quick note of his technique before I started my own work.

About an hour passed before the station attendant walked over to us to check our work.

"For a first-timer, you're making some solid progress Xander." The attendant told the boy with a smile on his face.

Xander nodded in response, but didn't seem to fully acknowledge the comment. He remained focused on his trap, trying to improve it. The attendant then looked over at my work. The man's eyes widened as he studied my work: a large net. He grasped the material and made a few efforts to undo the knots with his hands, but they would not budge.

"Oh, Alaska, well done! You're making great progress!" He exclaimed excitedly. "I see you were listening yesterday. You used the knots I showed you to make the net ever stronger and tighter!"

"Of course." I replied with a smirk.

In the corner of my eyes, I noticed Xander finally look away from his traps to study my net. His eyes were filled with curiosity as he studied my knots, making a note of how I made them. He waited until the station attendant left before he decided to speak.

"… Yeah it's good." Xander commented bitterly with a shrug. I also noticed a trace of anger in his voice that reminded me of Cascade's voice. "As expected from a Career."

Immediately, I felt a scowl develop on my face. He was being aggressive, and I did not like it. "And what does that mean?"

"It means exactly what I said. You're a career: of course you'd be good at something like this. You should be able to do anything that could maybe get you a kill." The boy from District Eight replied in the same bitter, angry tone-of-voice. "Aren't you wasting your time here though? Wouldn't you rather get better with a sword or something? Something that would make your kills a little flashier?"

"Don't talk like you know me just because I know how to tie knots!" I hissed at him.

I hated assumptions. Many people judged me as an orphan and my brother as someone who was mentally handicapped and assumed things about us that were simply not true. People had no right to assume things about someone just based on limited knowledge. Initial impressions and stereotypes were usually wrong! Perhaps it was hypocritical of me to feel that strongly about judgment, because I too would make assumptions of others, but I really did try to make a conscious effort to not let them overshadow my feelings toward someone until I got to know them. Xander made no attempt to hide his judgment of me, and I did not appreciate it at all.

Xander gave no verbal response. He looked as if he was mentally debating about whether or not he wanted to continue our 'argument' before he sighed and turned his attention back to his work. Seeing that our brief conversation, I turned my attention back to my net with a huff of anger.

Perhaps the thing that really bothered me about Xander's comments was that he kept calling me a career. I supposed I couldn't blame him for that, as I was the District Four tribute and I did associate with the Career Pack, but I was not a career. I only informed the careers that I was with them in order to ensure that I would not be targeted by them in the bloodbath. In the middle of the bloodbath skirmish after having obtained my supplies and weapons, I'll 'chase after a fleeing tribute' and never return. I was going to be fighting on my own: just the way I would prefer to be.

Storm informed me that I was making a mistake. I really didn't care, though. I simply worked better by myself. Besides, the Career Pack was going to be filled with paranoia about whether or not one of the other members was going to stab you in the back. I didn't want to have to look over my shoulder every second just to make sure if an ally was about to kill me. Alone, I wouldn't have to worry about being betrayed. My focus would solely be on my survival, and that was something I could do!

Another hour passed before I decided to leave the knot tying station. My eyes quickly wandered over the other training stations, looking for something to work on. They stopped on the obstacle course area in the back of the training hall.

The area was filled with a variety of ropes and objects that tributes could climb and run through. I started to walk down the path to the area. It seemed like the perfect area to train at, after all.

Once I arrived, I realized that Maddison, the girl from District Ten, and Alexandra, the girl from District Six, were already there. They were both rushing through the course at fast speeds, climbing ropes and jumping back and forth on the different surfaces. They were both trying to reach a central pedestal at the end of the obstacle course.

… _They are good. _

I remained still as I watched them complete the obstacle course. A few minutes passed before Alexandra reached the pedestal before Maddison by a few seconds. Neither girl appeared too winded from their training. Alexandra looked at the other girl with a slightly smug grin on her face.

"How many times is that now? Was that three times I've beaten you?" She asked with a light chuckle.

"Ah, shut up." Maddison retorted in response. "Ya know I'm catchin' up on ya. By the time we enter the arena, I should be runnin' circles around ya!"

"'Should' is a rather loose term. You'll never catch up to me." Alexandra replied.

Their banter actually surprised me. The comments were not laced with any anger. They both seemed slightly amused and their comments were more based on competitiveness. It was as if they were motivating each other to work harder.

As the two girls walked back towards the start of the obstacle course, they noticed me. Both of them seemed to be studying me. I could feel myself sweat slightly. I really did not like getting too much attention, even if it was just a couple of girls that were my age. It probably didn't help my nerves though that they weren't just 'a couple of girls my age': they were two people who I was going to have to fight to the death.

A few seconds of silence passed before Maddison spoke up with a light smile on her face.

"If ya were wantin' to use the course, go right ahead. We're probably gonna run it a couple more times if ya wanna compete 'gainst us." She told me.

I immediately nodded in response and I felt a grin develop on my face. All traces of awkwardness and fear disappeared and were replaced with a drive to win. "I'll take you both on."

"… We'll see." Alexandra shrugged in response.

The three of us remained still at the start of the obstacle course. After a verbal three second count, we all started to sprint through it at the same time.

The first part of the course had us run towards a set of ropes. We all then proceeded to climb it. The three of us were moving at roughly the same speed up the ropes. At the top, we were then required to swing from the rope towards an elevated platform a few feet away. Maddison was the first of us to reach the platform, followed by me, then Alexandra. The last stage of the course involved making a series of jumps across multiple platforms spaced far apart from each other until one could reach the center pedestal. Alexandra, despite being the last to start this leg, managed to pass us all here. She jumped effortlessly from each platform at a fast pace until she reached the center pedestal first. Maddison arrived second and I finished last.

A frown crept onto my face as I started to sweat after completing one run-through_. Ugh… I really need to improve._

"Second place again. I swear, this is startin' ta piss me off!" Maddison grumbled to herself.

"Maybe you should just get better." Alexandra suggested with a cocky grin.

"Do ya really need ta always be antagonizin' me like that?" The District Ten girl asked with an eye roll.

"Not really, but you're so easy to rile up that it's fun." The girl from District Six replied with a light giggle. She then turned her attention to me. "Alaska, right? You did a good job keeping up with us. You're quick."

"Thanks… but I'm already exhausted." I commented as I breathed heavily. "How are you two not tired… like at all?"

"Just from practicing here. It really helps with your endurance." Alexandra replied with a shrug.

"I see…" I mumbled out. I could feel myself becoming less and less tired and my competitive edge started to return to me. "… Are you both going to continue training here? Ready for another race?"

"I'm always ready." Alexandra replied with a smirk.

"Likewise. I swear, I'm gonna win this time!" Maddison declared passionately.

The three of us continued to train at the obstacle course for the next few hours. We only stopped to occasionally taunt or joke with each other after each race. In the process, we only motivated each other to compete harder to try and beat each other. Competing with Maddison and Alexandra only made me work harder on my training. It was something that I enjoyed and something that I knew I was going to appreciate once I was in the arena!

No promises of alliances were made. It seemed as if we were all willing to go into the Hunger Games by ourselves and fight ourselves. In the back of our heads, we all understood that only one person was going to win. Therefore, we never attempted to align with each other and become friends with each other. It was actually kind of sad. Alexandra had a sarcastic, dry-humor that I really liked and Maddison reminded me a lot of myself. The three of us could have actually become good friends in different circumstances. Unfortunately, we were all going to enter the Hunger Games. Furthermore, we all were put in during the Quarter Quell year where our lives were tied to another person back home…

Alexandra had her mother to look after, Maddison had her younger brother, and I had Oanou. The two of us had been through so much in our life and I was not going to let anything bad happen to him. Even if it meant killing everyone else and their family members, even Alexandra's and Maddison's, I would do it. I would deal with the guilt and the crying later. For now, I was going to fight and do everything I could for Oanou…

* * *

**Icarus Bolt's POV – District 5 Male**

A loud bell rang through the training hall, informing us that it was time for lunch break. I reluctantly put out my fire and let out my spot at the fire-making station. I then started to walk slowly to the dining area. I made sure to review the steps to produce a proper fire in my head as I walked. After devoting so much time to the station, I felt confident in my fire-making and I wanted to make sure I retained the knowledge.

Everything needed to be perfect before I entered the arena.

After arriving at the dining area, I grabbed a tray of chicken and looked for a place to sit. I quickly noticed a spot next to my district partner, Stephanie. I walked over to her table and placed my tray of food down.

"Hey Icarus." She greeted me politely with a wave. "How are you?"

"I'm alright. Can't complain too much I guess." I answered with a small smile. "How are you? How's training going?"

"I'm alright too I guess. And training is going better. I'm really getting better with a sword." She noted as she started to pick at the chicken on her tray of food with a fork. "It's a slow progress, but I can tell there's a little progress."

"Progress is good. I don't want my ally slacking off on me." I informed her with a light chuckle.

"I'm not slacking off, don't worry." Stephanie replied with a giggle.

The two of us made the decision to become allies after training yesterday. Atticus threw out the idea and we decided it was for the best. I was initially opposed to the idea of aligning with someone else in general, but I finally softened up to the idea and agreed. From getting to know Stephanie in our limited time together, I learned that she was a very sweet and analytical girl. To be completely honest, I doubt she had the ability to actively try and kill anyone. She was just too friendly. Perhaps that was a negative for most potential allies, but it was a positive to me: I didn't have to worry about her cutting my throat in my sleep.

Another reason I decided to ally with Stephanie was due to a realization I made recently: Stephanie was very similar to Tallie. They were around the same age and had a similar stature. They were both extremely sweet girls who were very inquisitive. They were both geniuses in two separate fields that I could never hope to understand: machinery and robotics for Stephanie and architecture for Tallie. The two were completely different people, but they had enough similarities that I couldn't stop myself from comparing them. Therefore, I couldn't stop myself from allying with Stephanie. She was going to be a reminder of my little cousin: the girl whose life I tried to save by volunteering… and ironically, the girl whose life was now linked to mine if I die.

I opened my mouth to say something to Stephanie, but I then noticed her eyes widen. A smile graced her lips as she started to wave.

"Hey! This way!" She called out.

I turned my head in the direction she was waving in. Walking awkwardly towards our table was the tall, lanky boy from District Three, Ethan Neurus. He quickly put his tray of food down right next to Stephanie's and sat down at our table.

"Thanks for the invite Stephanie. I really desired not to sit in solitude for two days in a row." Ethan replied with a smile on her face.

"Don't think anything about it. I don't mind some more company." Stephanie stated with a small giggle.

Ethan's smile seemed to grow in response. He then turned his head towards me and he extended a hand towards me. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance. My name is-"

"You're Ethan Neurus, the District Three male. You're thirteen years old, but unusually tall for your age. During the first day of training, you spent most of your time working with knives and the survival stations." I stated quietly, interrupting him as I glared at him.

Back in District Five, I could be described as reserved. I was not a particularly outgoing person who initiated conversation unless I knew you well. Here, I felt that I went beyond that basic description. With the exception of Stephanie due to her similarities with Tallie, I really did not want to associate with the other tributes. We were all going into the Hunger Games arena with the intent to kill each other. A friend during the pre-games could become your murderer once the Games started. I wanted to be cautious and detach myself from the other tributes as much as I could.

As such, I was rather suspicious when the District Three boy walked over here without any warning. He was an unknown factor to me. I did not know anything about his personality and I did not know what he had intended on doing here with Stephanie or me.

"That's, well, a rather astute observation of me I suppose." Ethan commented with a gulp as he brought his hand back to his side and looked downward towards his food.

"I like to consider myself observant." I replied with a shrug. "This might come across rude, but what exactly are you doing here? If you really did not want to sit by yourself, you could have just joined someone's table: your district partner, for example."

"Well…" Ethan's eyes trailed downward even further. It looked as if the boy was about to pick up his tray of food and leave the area right then and there.

"I invited him. Did you not see me waving?" Stephanie spoke, a frown on her face. "Don't be too harsh with him Icarus! This was actually something I wanted to talk with you Icarus."

My eyes quickly moved towards Stephanie. I raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh?"

"Well, I was thinking that Ethan could join our alliance." She told me, her frown developing into a nervous smile.

I could feel my eyes widen after that statement: "… Excuse me?"

This was precisely the type of situation I did not want to get myself into! I had no knowledge of Ethan at all or what type of person he was. Considering that we were meeting each other in the middle of training, I could assume that the boy was going to act fake in all of our interactions. I really did not want to ally with him in the Games: a kid who I had no knowledge of. He could easily stab me in the back – literally, later in the Games.

"It was my suggestion for the alliance, actually." Ethan spoke up, nervousness evident in his tone-of-voice. This nervousness seemed to double as I turned my head to face him again. "You see… Stephanie and I become acquainted earlier today and we began to converse with each other. We realized that we had a similar affinity towards robotics and realized that we could combine our intellect and potentially do some brilliant work together in the arena."

"We actually already began work on a project that could really impact the Games. It would guarantee one of us winning the Games, I think." Stephanie added fervently, nodding her head. "I realize that I already had an alliance with you, Icarus, and I have no intention of leaving it. So, I wanted to know if you would be okay with adding Ethan to ours…"

I remained silent as I continued to study Ethan, looking for any traces of malicious intent. I wanted to believe I was being paranoid about nothing and that he was just an eccentric young boy who would not try and do any harm to me or Stephanie, but I couldn't guarantee it. There were so many uncertainties that had to be taken accounted for. For all we knew, Ethan Neurus could be a child actor from District Three who was trying to con himself into our alliance by faking similar interests with Stephanie and then, after gaining our trust and our supplies from the bloodbath, would kill both of us and run off with everything.

"… What are your plans?" I asked after a brief period of silence.

Ethan's eyes seemed to light up immediately. All nervousness faded away and was replaced with fervent excitement. "As you were aware, I was wearing a fake suit of armor during the tribute parade two nights ago. What I was thinking of doing was designing a individual suits armor to protect us."

"They would essentially be a giant robotic suit." Stephanie added. I noticed she had a similar look in her eyes as Ethan. She had that 'look' that showed she was about to go on a long, passionate discussion. "Ethan and I discussed many of the properties of the suit already. It would be durable and could withstand most physical weaponry, but it would not limit the movement of the user. It would be resistant to temperature changes: both cold and hot. It would also be able to add extra force to our weapons, making our attacks stronger."

I looked at both of them in disbelief as I tried to wrap my mind around this robotic suit idea.

"Would this even be possible to design? That sounds ridiculously convoluted to work with." I questioned.

"It would be very possible." Ethan nodded confidently in affirmation. "I work directly in robot production in District Three. I would be able to design the suit easily with the proper materials."

"I could also work on blueprints to match our ideal suit." Stephanie noted. "I've been working with robotics for a while in my free time. I could design something workable and easy to make."

"What about resources?" I continued to question. "Certainly something like this would need a bunch of materials and tools to make. There isn't going to be enough things in the cornucopia to use to create this suit of armor."

"Trust me; I believe I have an idea that will allow for the creation of these suits. It should not be too difficult. Resources will not be a major concern." Ethan reassured me confidently. His confidence immediately faded though as he looked at me with uncertain eyes. The boy started to fidget with his fingers. "So… um, does that all interest you? Could I maybe join your alliance?"

My eyes closed in thought as I started to judge whether or not Ethan should join the alliance.

Truth be told, I was interested in their plans. Machinery and robotics were not in my expertise and I was curious about what they intended on doing to create this suit of armor. I also noted the practical usage of the suit. It could serve as a valuable tool to further our progress in the arena.

My doubts about Ethan faking his similarities with Stephanie were no longer valid. He appeared way too passionate and knowledgeable about the robotic suit to be merely faking it. His nervousness did also seem sincere.

… _Oh what the hell. Why not? _I still didn't fully trust the boy, but I was very interested in his ideas for the arena and I realized that he could be a major asset in advancing myself further in the Games. Besides, if he was able to create a massive, over-powered suit of armor, I certainly wanted him on my side rather than against me!

"You and Stephanie already seem to be a team anyway. I can't stop you from joining the alliance now." I answered with a shrug. "You're in."

Ethan's eyes lit up with excitement as he quickly grabbed my hand and started to shake it. "Thank you, thank you! You will not regret this. Rest assured, I will present you with the product of my work once it is completed. I have no doubts that one of the three of us will be winning the Games this year!

I shook his hand awkwardly as I made an effort to smile politely. Whether the boy was being fake or not, he was certainly very eccentric…

"Thank you Icarus." Stephanie spoke up with a smile on her face. "Ethan's right: you won't regret it. We'll begin work immediately!"

I turned my head to face Stephanie. In her place, I noticed the smiling face of Tallie.

_Their similarities are starting to bother me._ I was actually hoping they would end soon. It was going to be extremely difficult to kill her later in the Games if I couldn't stop imagining her as my cousin…

The rest of the lunch break was a blur to me. Stephanie and Ethan began mapping out the plans for the robotic suit and began discussing necessary materials and the general methods on how they were going to produce it. They talked in technobabble that flew over my head. I had no chance to understand the terminology they were using. Instead, I opted to think inwardly of my own individual plans.

No matter what Ethan and Stephanie designed, I knew my primary weapon was going to be electricity. I made some brief trips to a few training stations and reviewed books to gain more ideas for traps. I was still very confident in my skills as an electrician. They needed to be better before I entered the arena, but I felt confident that I would find some way to improve. One of the benefits of being an overly-cautious perfectionist was that my body seemingly refused to let me half-ass my learning. I was not going to enter the Games unprepared.

Ethan was right. One of the three of us was going to win the Hunger Games this year. What he probably did not know, though, that it was going to be me. I had a cousin's life to save, and I was going to do everything to ensure that she remained alive…

* * *

**Florina Everett's POV – District 11 Female**

When the lunch break ended, Bane and I quickly said goodbye to each other before we wandered off to our own survival stations. Bane walked over to a station to work on his camouflage. I, on the other hand, quickly found the District Six boy, Booker Comston, and started to follow him, hoping that he either didn't notice me or didn't care that I was following him.

I really hoped that he, or anyone else, didn't see me as a stalker. That was the last thing I was trying to be! However, one of the things that my father told me to do during the training days was make sure I studied the other tributes. Outside of learning from the survival stations, that was by far one of the most important things I could do. The other twenty-three tributes were who I would be competing against in the arena. It was absolutely essential that I understood them and knew what type of people I was competing against. I needed to know their strengths and weaknesses if I wanted to stand any chance!

Although I didn't want to doubt the strengths of any of the other tributes, my main focuses of study were the non-Career volunteers. I watched a lot of Hunger Games with my father and one of the things that I quickly learned was that the non-Career volunteers were usually major contenders in the Games. They had to have something special about them if they were willing to risk their lives and enter the Games willingly! Therefore, I made sure to put major emphasis on studying them and learning about them.

Jason Icarus, the boy from District Nine, was a very muscular guy and was able to use his muscles well. While he spent most of his time at survival stations, he did go over to the weightlifting area once and he was able to easily move nearly every object there. The guy was tough and I did NOT want to have to fight him head-on. I would lose, as would most people! He seemed like a really nice, shy guy from what I observed, though. However, he also seemed to be depressed. He was really bothered by something…

In contrast, Icarus Bolt, the boy from District Five, didn't seem to have as many visible emotions at all. He spent all of his time at the survival stations, only occasionally looking at a station on electricity as if he was about to go visit him. There was something very concerning about him. I didn't know exactly how to put it, but Icarus came across as really threatening to me. Call it a gut feeling, but I expected him to become a major player in the arena later.

There was something EXTRMELEY concerning about the boy from District Ten, Logan Faber. He scared me from the second I saw him in the reaping video and nothing has changed my thoughts whatsoever. He has spent all of his time solely at the scythe station. He attacked the mannequins with an aggression that I had never seen in a person. He seemed to have a lot of hate and anger that he was trying to release out all of it. He was somebody that I really hoped to never meet in the arena. He was legitimately scary!

The final non-Career volunteer was an enigma to me, which was why I was following him. Booker Comston seemed to keep mostly to himself and made no attempts to really get to know anyone. He made a few stops at nearly every station: from survival stations to the stations on nearly every weapon. The guy was trying to learn everything it seemed!

What was so strange about Booker was that I could not properly read him. With Booker, I couldn't really tell anything about him. He seemed uneasy with every weapon, as if he was frustrated about with each weapon. It was like as if he was not able to use the weapon that he preferred to use. I also couldn't tell any signs of his character during the training. To me, he was simply a mystery. There were so many things I didn't know about him and I wanted and needed to know more!

Booker continued to walk over to another new weapon station: the scythe training session. The station attendant seemed thrilled to have someone other than Logan approach the stand.

"A new face! Excellent!" He exclaimed happily.

"Yup, I'm a new face. Trying to learn everything I can." Booker mumbled in response.

The station attendant quickly gave him a scythe and the boy was sent off to the training field. He started striking at mannequins immediately, next to Logan.

It was odd that I kept coming back to the scythe station. The scythe was my preferred weapon and I was going to try and get a hold of one at the cornucopia. I didn't really want to train much with it, though. My father had told me many stories of all the tributes he has mentored that made no attempts to hide their strengths in the pre-arena and were immediately targeted in the bloodbath. If you were seen as a threat, you were prioritized and killed early. I didn't think I was going to be too good compared to the other tributes and their preferred weapons, but you never know. The last thing I wanted to do was die in the bloodbath! I had to make it out and survive: both for myself and for my father!

As a result, I stayed just to the side of the training station and watched Booker and Logan practice. Booker was also muscular and his swinging was rather good. He had a lot of power with the weapon. Still, he seemed a little awkward with the weapon: just like all of the other weapons he trained with. The only time I had seen him relaxed was when he was using his fists. I couldn't tell what his preferred weapon was going to be, but I could tell that it wasn't going to be the scythe. He just seemed too uncomfortable with it. He was probably going to switch to a different stand soon.

With that in mind, my eyes wandered towards Logan. I couldn't help but inch a little closer to him as I studied his technique. There were definitely elements of his fighting style that I hoped to emulate in the arena!

Logan had completely destroyed his most recent mannequin. It was lying on the ground in shreds as he started to approach another one. His grip was great. His force was amazing. He was definitely a fighter with it. He would definitely have no problem killing with it. The one thing that I truly noticed about his style, though, was that he was too aggressive.

Somehow, I needed to find a way to outsmart or overpower him. He had no defensive capabilities at all, it seemed. If someone could fend him off and then go on the offensive against him, they could probably take him out. I just hoped that if we ever had to face each other, I would be able to take him on…

A few minutes passed by and Logan continued massacring his mannequins. After a while, though, he stopped and turned his head in my direction. He scowled and glared at me, which caused shivers to start running down my spine.

"District Eleven… You've been watching me for a while." He spoke quietly in a voice that caused me to shiver even more.

I didn't realize that he even knew I was there! Whenever someone spotted me, they would usually approach me and I would apologize for bothering them. He never said anything to me before, so I just assumed that he never noticed. Apparently he did, and judging by the look in his eyes, he was angry about it…

"I'm s-sorry…" I mumbled back as I started to back away. "I'll go now…"

Logan looked forward at me intently, as if he was trying to decide something in his head. Then, his scowl developed into the single-most twisted smile I have ever seen on a person.

"Why go now?" He questioned.

Immediately, Logan sprinted away from his place at the scythe training towards me. I didn't even have time to get away: Logan had reached me within seconds. The boy swept my feet off the ground, causing me to fall to the ground. I gasped in pain. Logan then held the scythe in his hand against my throat.

"You seem so interested in me and what I can do with a scythe. I guess I should show you exactly what I can do with one." He said, his grin growing even further as he pressed the blade of his scythe further against my neck.

Tears filled in my eyes. I could tell that he was actually going to kill me. Was… this is it? Was I going to die here? Before the Games even started? I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the inevitable.

_I'm… I'm sorry Dad…_

A few seconds passed by until I heard a loud thumping noise. The feeling of the scythe's blade against my neck disappeared. I quickly opened my eyes to see what was happening.

There was a logical voice in the back of my head that told me that Logan wouldn't be able to kill me. The peacekeepers would interfere to make sure I could enter the Games. When I opened my still tear-filled eyes, I expected to see the boy detained by the peacekeepers.

Instead, I saw Logan knocked to the ground, the scythe knocked away. He was slowly getting up from the ground. Standing right by me was Booker. I stared at him with wide eyes. _Was he the one who saved me from Logan?_

The two boys were glaring at each other.

"Back off. The Games will be starting in a few days. Contain yourself until then!" Booker shouted at him.

"District Six, I'll give you one warning: don't interfere with my hunt." Logan hissed in response back as he stood up.

"Don't try and threaten me. You tried to murder her in cold blood for no good reason." Booker retorted, his glare seemingly intensifying. "Why? Why are you trying to kill her now?"

"Does it matter? I'll kill her in the end. And I'll kill you too." Logan threatened, ignoring Booker's question. He then started to walk over towards his scythe.

Before their argument could continue, a group of peacekeepers rushed forward and grabbed Logan.

"One of the few rules Gamemaker Singed gave you all was not to attack and try to kill any of the tributes before the Games start, and you couldn't follow it." A peacekeeper hissed at him.

The peacekeepers started to drag Logan away from the area. The boy was struggling to get out of their grip, but he couldn't escape. Maybe he could get away from one or two, but not a whole group. Logan, nevertheless, continued to try and proceeded to glare at us during his attempts.

"District Six, District Eleven: you both will die. I will hunt you down in the arena and I will kill you both!" He cursed at us in his quiet, angry voice.

Eventually, the peacekeepers and Logan disappeared from view. They were probably taking the boy away to reprimand him. I knew they weren't going to kill him or anything, because they needed all twenty-four tributes alive before the Hunger Games. Still, I hoped that they would find some way to punish him.

A few seconds passed before I fell to my knees, breathing in-and-out heavily. I had never had something so scary happen to me in my life. I forgot all logic and all I could see was my death. For the briefest of moments, I saw my own death at the end of Logan's scythe.

_Was that what the actual Hunger Games were going to be like? Am I going to have to face that feeling every second, never knowing when I could die?_

"Hey, are you okay?"

I looked upward and saw Booker was still standing over me with a concerned look on his face. He extended his hand to me, which I took and used to pull myself up from the ground.

"I-I'm okay…" I mumbled in response, stuttering slightly. I was still scared from the near-death experience.

"Good." A light smile appeared on his lips. It looked so foreign on his normally serious face. "I'd feel terrible if something bad happened and I wasn't able to stop it."

"D-Don't worry about it." I quickly shook my head. I felt my cheeks redden slightly in embarrassment, but I did my best to hide it. "I'm fine. Honestly. I can take care of myself. Thank you though…"

"Don't thank me. And I wasn't doubting that you couldn't take care of yourself. I was just making sure because of that guy." Booker commented. He then glared in the direction where Logan was dragged off in. "I'm very familiar with people like him. They're dangerous. No matter how strong you are, you need to exercise caution around people like him. They're a threat to every good man and woman."

I noticed Booker's eyes fill up with more anger. I could tell that he was thinking of something that was really upsetting him: something more than just Logan.

"Uh… are you okay?" I asked cautiously.

Immediately, Booker turned his head towards me and shook away his thoughts.

"I'm fine, Miss. Don't worry about me." He responded with a light chuckle. "Anyway, we both should get back to our own training. I'm glad you are safe."

With those words, Booker walked off. He didn't head back to the scythe station but, instead, walked towards a station with staves. As I predicted, he was going to try out a different weapon.

I remained still, watching him arrive at his station and begin his practice with a staff. I couldn't help myself. The peacekeepers would have most likely intervened in time, but I couldn't ignore the fact that he attempted to save my life from Logan. I just couldn't ignore that fact!

A light smile crept onto my face. _For such a serious and occasionally scary guy, Booker definitely had a nice side to him. _

A few seconds passed before I shook my head and started to head over to one of the survival stations on edible plants. I couldn't spend all my time trying to observe tributes: I needed to train too and make sure I could survive! In the arena, I was most likely going to be by myself. If someone attacked me, like Logan, I had to be prepared to fight them off. I couldn't hope that some dashing savior would appear to rescue me. I had to fight for myself: both for me and my father! And I was going to do just that!

_Although an alliance wouldn't be that bad of an idea._ Instinctively, my eyes wandered in the direction of Booker. _It would be nice to have someone to work with in the arena. I should probably make one soon…_

* * *

**Kaylee Harper's POV – District 3 Female**

"That was intense!" Yaro commented, whistling in surprise.

I nodded in agreement, giving no verbal comment. Every tribute, no matter what station they were at, watched the boy from District Ten, Logan, attempt to kill the girl from District Eleven, Florina. We all saw the boy from District Six, Booker, intervene and stop him from striking her. We all then watched the peacekeepers drag Logan away before he tried again to kill them or anyone else.

From the moment I saw him, I knew there was something off about Logan. I just didn't expect him to be a complete nutter. It really seemed like he was going to kill the girl without any regard for the rules we were told. Either he was completely stupid or completely insane. Most likely, it was a combination of the two.

The idea of being in the arena with Logan was disturbing. No matter how much of a dumbass he may appear to be, he was definitely skilled with a scythe. At this rate, he would definitely be able to kill me in a head-on fight between just the two of us. This meant I needed to keep training to change that fate!

"Well, back to training I guess. Can't focus too much on that for too long." Yaro noted with a sigh.

"Yeah. We have to keep training, keeping in mind that '_that'_ is our competition." I stated dryly.

Yaro and I began training with each other after the lunch break at the knife station. We had made an agreement to work together in the Hunger Games and we decided that it would be a good idea to train together when we realized we were planning on using the same weapon. The idea was that we could motivate each other to do better.

I wasn't completely certain if his presence would make it easier for me to learn how to use knives, but I was more than welcome to try anything to improve. I was coming into the Hunger Games with zero weapon training whatsoever. I needed to leave the training days feeling comfortable enough with a weapon so I could fight. Anything that could improve my skills were welcome!

Both Yaro and I faced a set of targets in front of our training station. We raised our hands and quickly threw our knives, trying to make contact. We each threw ten knives. Yaro managed to make contact four times, while I made contact five times.

"Damn, you beat me by just one. I really hope that doesn't become a trend." Yaro grumbled in teasing manner. "You're getting better though."

"Tell me about it." I sighed in response as I thought back to my first time at the station. I couldn't land a single knife at any target. It was embarrassing and demoralizing. Thankfully, I was picking up on the art at a rather fast pace. "You're not a slouch either though. You've been improving too."

"I guess, but I'm still not getting much better with the whole 'throwing' aspect of knives though. I think I'm probably just going to keep them close and use them as a melee weapon." Yaro noted. He quickly grabbed another knife from the stand at the station and quickly got into a position to charge. I could tell that he was trying to appear tough. "Heh, I feel like one of those gang members you see in the movies. Don't I look pretty badass?"

"You? In a gang? Badass?" I laughed in response. "Yaro, no matter how hard you try to look tough with that knife, you don't look like you could hurt a fly. You'd make the shittiest gang member. None of the ones in District Three would respect you at least!"

"Eh, yeah…" Yaro chuckled uneasily in response. "Well, I'm sure the gangs in District Twelve would accept me. We don't really have many, so they can't afford to be picky with their members."

"District Twelve must be quite the unthreatening district then." I commented dryly. This earned a more relaxed laugh from my partner.

The more time I spent with him, the more certain I was that Yaro was the right choice for a partner. Although he wasn't intimidating in personality, he was a big guy and he was rather capable. His mind was sharp and he was actually better at me with a knife in close-range. He would not hold me back in the arena and he was definitely going to be an asset to have.

Yaro also reminded me a little of home back in District Three. Back at my job, I had a friend named Genna that Yaro reminded me of. Both of them were polite, good-natured, funny, and above all else, sensible people who followed all of the rules. I couldn't relate in the slightest, but I did really get along with Genna back home. The positive behavior was contagious to an extent and it made being around them a lot easier than being around most people. Yaro was a very similar person to her with a very similar behavior. It made me feel comfortable around him: something I never expected to feel when I was in the Hunger Games.

Having said that, I knew I would never be too comfortable with him. He would never be able to replace Genna. I was going to have to kill him at some point in the future, after all…

The two of us continued to train at the knife station until the bell rang, signaling the end of training for the day. Yaro and I were covered in sweat after working hard at the station.

"Well, we're getting better. I can tell that much." Yaro told me with a smile on his face.

"Yeah… definitely." I nodded in agreement. "Good job."

Yaro's smile seemingly grew. He opened his mouth to respond, but the words died on his throat as he noticed someone. I turned my head to face the same direction and saw that his district partner, Emery, was approaching us.

I could feel my body stiffen. I did not like Emery. She was a disrespectful, overly-aggressive brat who seemed to have no common sense after her rejection of my alliance offer. I really did not want to have to talk to her now.

"What do you want?" I hissed at her as she continued to approach us.

Emery's eyes narrowed into a glare, but she gave no verbal reply. She bit her lip slightly before she sighed and started to speak.

"Look, we got off on the wrong foot. I want to call it truce. Allies?" She mumbled quietly.

My eyes narrowed in suspicion as I stared at her in open disbelief. "And what made you change your mind?"

"Nothing in particular. Just the idea of having a couple of allies actually sounds good to me after I had some time to think it over." Emery answered nonchalantly. She then looked over at me impatiently. "Well? We good or what?"

"It's good for me. I said you'd be joining us eventually anyway." Yaro commented with a light chuckle. "You just can't help but come back to me. There's no escape from the Yaro Magnet of Friendship!"

"Your jokes get worse and worse with each passing day. My god Joker…" Emery grumbled in response, shaking her head slightly both in frustration and amusement. She then turned her attention back to me. "Well, what about you Business? Is it good for you?"

My eyes narrowed at the 'Business' nickname. I really did not like Emery and I doubted that I ever would. Based solely on personality, I wanted to reject her. She was the one who rejected me in the first place earlier yesterday anyway! Besides, I had no reason to trust her. She didn't seem to like me much either and I could easily imagine a scenario where she turned on me.

Nevertheless, I couldn't help but think of possible benefits of working with her. I did take note of her skills with a spear and she was indeed getting rather good at it. She could fight, which meant she would be able to work with my plans for the arena. Besides, there was a chance she could be used as a distraction during the bloodbath that could guarantee that Yaro and I survived.

"Don't call me Business again, and we have a deal." I informed her as I extended my hand towards her.

"I make no promises." Emery smirked in response as she shook my hand, solidifying our alliance.

"I had a feeling the two of you would warm up eventually." Yaro commented with a light chuckle. "Who knows? Maybe the two of you will become great friends."

"Doubt it." I mumbled under my breath quietly. While I could imagine a scenario where Yaro and I became closer, I could not think of any way where Emery and I became 'friends'. I had a pretty crystal clear idea of the type of person Emery was and I had no intentions of getting closer to her as a result. She would be an ally and tool during the Hunger Games: nothing more.

A few seconds passed before Yaro and Emery headed off away back to their living quarters. Once we separated, I walked back to the elevator and ran into Ethan.

"Greetings Kaylee." Ethan stated politely with a smile on his face as I approached him.

My eyebrows raised slightly. Ethan was never the one to initiate conversation with me. Nevertheless, I shrugged before responding. "Hey."

"Is it safe of me to assume that training was satisfactory today?" He questioned.

A smile graced my lips as I resisted the urge to laugh. Ethan's word choices in conversation made everything he said unintentionally funny. I didn't laugh, though, as I realized he was trying to be polite and not funny.

"Eh, I guess. Just improving on everything before the arena." I answered vaguely. "You?"

"Training was successful today. I feel content with everything today." Ethan responded.

I let a small chuckle out. "You're pretty happy today, aren't you?"

"I suppose I am." He replied, his smile growing wider as he started to daze off, focusing on his thoughts.

When I first met Ethan on the train, the boy was quiet. He was very awkward in conversation with me, our mentors, and our escort. It was extremely difficult to even speak to him. Our first real conversation only occurred on the chariots and it was about our costume of all things! He rarely smiled and had this aura or nervousness and depression around him. According to our escort, Levi, it was pretty standard for most boys around the same age of him who are reaped. Today was the first day I've seen him not only initiate conversation but also actually appear happy.

I considered myself a good judge of character, and although I would consider Ethan weird and stereotypically nerdy, I knew he was a good kid. It was nice to see the boy actually happy for once, seeing him as he most likely was back in District Three.

Conversation died there as we entered the elevator. Ethan remained focused on his thoughts while I stood by the elevator door, watching him. I couldn't help but be curious about what was making him so happy, but I resisted the urge to ask. It's his privacy. I hated when people bothered me about my life and my thoughts, so I didn't want to do the same thing to him.

A few seconds passed by before the elevator doors opened. Ethan and I both walked out of the elevator. After greeting Levi and our mentors and after a quick dinner, the two of us went back to our own bedrooms. I lied down in my bed and started to feel relaxed. If there was one thing I could say I liked about being at the Capitol, it was the bed and the other luxuries. I could never afford this stuff back in District Three with my shitty paycheck.

Despite my body being relaxed, my mind was not. Everything still felt unreal to me: I could hardly believe everything that happened. I couldn't believe that I got reaped during my last year being eligible. I couldn't believe that I was forced to start training and getting ready for a fight to the death with twenty-three other kids. More than anything, I couldn't believe that I was put into the Hunger Games the year of the damn quarter quell, where now Harper was in danger of dying with me…

A frown crossed my lips as I thought about him. Levi told me that the Capitol announced the twist and the Head Gamemaker's meeting with us was broadcasted live .That meant Harper knew he was in danger. That also meant my whole family knew about our affair. Renton knew too, then, that I was cheating on him…

_As if they all needed another reason to see me as a fuck-up…_

I closed my eyes and attempted to fall asleep. Maybe this time, I would be able to wake up back in District Three, away from his hellish nightmare.

* * *

**Author's Note:** And here we are: the second training chapter! :)

I'm gonna keep this author's note brief, because I don't have too much to say at the moment for some reason. Just, I hope you all liked it. Let me know what you all thought and any new opinions you may have on the Games and the tributes! I'd love to hear from you all!

I'll begin working on the next chapter in a little bit. I will see you all then! :)


	11. Training Day 3: Making an Impact

**Raven Bell's POV – District 8 Female**

Today was my birthday.

A girl's fourteenth birthday was considered nothing too special. I assumed it would be just like my last one. My mother would most likely bake a cake, my father would actually take off from work, my brother would not be too annoying, and Caroline, Gracie, and Rose would come over and simply hang out with me. It wouldn't the most exciting day ever, but it would be a very fun day with my friends and family. I wasn't the type of person to expect or want much: I just wanted an enjoyable day with everyone that I cared about.

Today, however, I was not with my family or friends. I was away in the living quarters of District Eight, having an awkwardly quiet breakfast of omelets with Xander, the District Eight mentors, and our escort, Destiny. No one was happy to be here, especially me. _Some birthday…_

"So, how's your training going?" Ray, one of our mentors, asked us as he took a bite into his eggs. "Any noticeable improvements?"

"I'm getting pretty good at traps I think…" Xander mumbled in response as he poked at his omelet with his forks. He never seemed to eat much at any meals. It was like he was never hungry.

"I finally picked up on how to use a slingshot. I think I'm not too bad with it." I answered with a small, polite smile on my face. "I also went through one of the obstacle courses yesterday and I did it at a good speed."

"That's all, um, good to hear. It sounds like you all are making improvements." Ray commented with an uneasy smile. He then turned to his fellow mentor. "What do you think Tonya?"

Ray was rather awkward with his advice. He was the victor of the one hundred forty-eighth Hunger Games, so this was only his second year mentoring tributes. The guy, only eighteen years old, never seemed certain how to talk to us about the Games or what advice he should give us. He seemed almost dependent on both Destiny and Tonya in order to give us proper advice.

Tonya was different from him, however. She was a victor from over twenty years ago, so she had a much firmer understanding of how to do the job. On paper, she would be the ideal mentor…

"It's still not enough. You two are still in trouble." She answered bluntly as she took a sip of coffee. "You only have one more day of training left. You all need to make it count, or you both will die in the bloodbath."

… _If only she actually believed in me._ Every time I tried to talk to her and ask her about the arena and any advice she had, she would simply shake her head and roll her eyes, saying something about 'bloodbath fodder'. She assumed I was going to die, so she was never going to try and help me.

Xander and I shrunk in our seats, focusing our attention solely on our food. A remark came to my head immediately about how likely Tonya appeared when she was reaped as a thirteen year old girl years ago. Another comment also came to my mind about how I stood a better chance in the Hunger Games than she did to successfully mentor someone out of the Hunger Games arena. However, I stayed quiet and said neither of my comebacks. I wasn't in the mood to argue with her or anyone really. Instead, I chose to quickly finish my breakfast.

It was hard to have both a mentor who had no idea what he was doing and another mentor who was quick to dismiss our chances. This already put both me and Xander at a disadvantage. We weren't really getting advice on what to do in the arena. If it wasn't for the survival stations and from watching previous years of Hunger Games, I'd probably have no idea what to do in the arena.

Breakfast ended shortly after, as both Xander and I finished early. I walked back to my room and took a shower. Once I finished, I got dressed and tied my hair into a ponytail before I walked out of the room.

When I walked out into the main room, only Xander was there. Neither Destiny nor the mentors were there.

"They aren't here. Destiny went out with one of the other escorts for a few drinks while Ray and Tonya simply don't care. They're in their rooms or something." Xander told me bitterly before I said a word.

"Typical." I replied with an eye roll. "It's not like they think we are going to die, so it's not like they could do something to help us survive."

Xander laughed humorlessly at my sarcasm. "We're just a couple of walking corpses to everyone, aren't we? The two of us, the tributes from District Eleven and District Seven, the boy from District Three, the girl from District Five… we're all the ones who've been underestimated. Everyone knows what will happen to us. We're going to die in the bloodbath, aren't we?"

"No, we aren't." I shook my head immediately. "The two of us won't at least!"

"How are you so certain about that?" He questioned me. His bitterness seemed to change form. He now sounded more depressed than anything else.

"Call it a gut feeling or something else, but I just know that I can win. Nothing is going to tell me otherwise." I answered, tightening my fists to show my determination.

No matter how little faith our mentors, our escort, and anyone watching had in me, I was sure I could win. I had to win. I was learning everything I could in the survival stations and I picked up how to use a slingshot _fast_. My father taught me a little about hand-to-hand combat and I was a dancer, so I was definitely agile on my feet. I realized that, on paper, I probably don't stand as much of a chance as the careers or a few of the older tributes, but I definitely stood _a_ chance! That was enough to make me feel at least slightly confident in myself.

I'm a headstrong and stubborn girl and I was not going to give up just because some people here doubted me. My best friend's life was at risk too, so I was going to make sure I was able to come back to her!

"… Wish I felt as confident as you did." Xander mumbled in response with a sigh.

A frown crept on to my face as I looked at the boy in front of me. I never knew Xander before, but I felt we had become decently close over the past few days. He may be overly quiet at some times, but he was always sweet and polite to me whenever we did talk. I also respected his lack of a filter. He was just so honest about everything. I knew he didn't believe in himself, which was just a shame.

"You just need to look at yourself objectively. Stop thinking about what everyone else says. Think about yourself." I told him, attempting to give him a reassuring smile.

"Kinda hard to do that when everyone keeps talking to us about how little of a chance we have." He mumbled angrily.

I shook my head in response. "Again, just ignore it. I saw you at the knot-tying area yesterday and I saw some of the traps you can do. You're getting pretty impressive."

Xander's eyes immediately lit up. "You think so?"

"I know so!" I replied, giggling slightly at his excitement.

I wasn't even lying. Xander's traps were much better than anything I could hope to do. I tried to do some experimenting with wires and things like that, but I just couldn't make anything very strong. It seemed to come naturally to Xander. It was something I was almost jealous of!

"I hope I am." Xander commented with a light blush. "I've, um, been tinkering with a couple of different things back home in District Eight. I'm good with my hands and making things. Things about traps seem to come naturally to me."

"Believe me, I can tell." I informed him as I lightly jabbed his shoulder teasingly. "Good with your hands indeed!"

Xander's blush seemed to grow even further, which caused me to giggle a little louder. A few seconds passed before his blush started to die and he looked towards the elevator.

"We should probably be heading to the training hall now, right? I mean… it is the last day." He stated. "We can't afford to waste any time today."

"Yeah, yeah. Come on, let's go then." I told him.

The two of us walked over to the elevator doors. We entered it when they opened and began our descent towards the training hall for our last day of training. Every second was going to count.

Xander and I stood in silence as we waited for the elevator to arrive at our destination. He eventually decided to break the silence and he turned to face me.

"Happy birthday by the way Raven…" He mumbled.

I blinked in response and my mouth dropped.

"How did you even know about that?" I questioned in surprise.

"You mentioned it on the train once when talking to Destiny. Obviously she didn't remember when it was." Xander replied with a frown, his fists tightening as he thought about our escort.

"I'm impressed you remembered that!" I stated still in surprise. "That was the only time I ever talked about it with anyone here!"

"Don't think too much about it. I just remember things like that easily." He dismissed my praise with a shrug.

"Well, your memory is great then." I told him. Surprise started to leave my body and I felt happy: happy that somebody cared to remember something that small about me here. It meant a lot to me know that my district partner cared about me, even if it was just a little. A smile graced my lips as I walked over to Xander and gave him a hug. I noticed his body stiffen and his cheeks start to redden slightly, which caused me to giggle lightly. "Thank you so much though. I really appreciate it."

"N-No problem. Um, well, er, enjoy being fourteen." He stuttered in response, his cheeks becoming more-and-more red with each word.

I giggled lightly and let the boy go from my hug. He still looked red and stiff from my hug, which only caused my laughter to grow.

He's reacting that way all just because of a hug? Boys were so weird sometimes.

A few more moments passed before the elevator doors opened. Xander and I quickly said goodbye to each other as we started to walk into the training hall. Unlike the previous two days, we were one of the last districts to arrive. Only District Seven and District Twelve seemed to not be here yet. All of the other tributes were already at the training sessions, continuing to learn from where they last were.

I wasn't one to dawdle and do nothing, so I started to walk towards the fire-making station. After there, I would go quickly review the information at the edible plants. When I leave there, I would move to knot-tying, then camouflage, and then any other survival stations I could go to. After lunch, I would then review how to use a slingshot.

My main focus today was to review all of my information. I needed to make sure I was really ready. I wasn't going to another chance. This was it and I had to make every moment today count. This really could be the difference in whether I, and Caroline, lived or not!

I didn't need any advice from Tonya or Ray. If they weren't going to help, then I could look after myself. I did know the people who did believe in me – my mother, father, my brother, Caroline and the rest of my friends, and even Jason. That was all the support I needed!

With that thought in my head, I reached the fire-making station and took a seat next to the quiet, nervous-looking boy from District Three and the tough-looking girl from District Ten and started to review the proper ways to make a fire. Today was going to be a very busy day and I need to make sure every second was used properly!

* * *

**Jason Icarus's POV – District 9 Male **

After spending the first hour reviewing survival information, I started to wander the training hall aimlessly. My eyes wandered over the different weapon stations, trying to figure out which one I should go to.

As a pacifist, weapons bothered me. The idea of tools being used for the sole purpose of killing was a disturbing one to me. Originally, I had no intentions of using them. I knew that I did have the capability to kill another person. On the train ride, I became comfortable with the idea of dying in the arena. As long as I died as myself, maybe protecting some allies or even in some way as an act of rebellion, I would have been pleased with myself. Now, I knew I couldn't simply accept death, so I needed to figure out how to use a weapon of some sorts, or else Lacy would be executed…

I shook my head vigorously, making sure I didn't cry. I had already cried enough after I found out about the Quarter Quell twist. This whole experience was almost too ironic to me. I volunteered to save the life of a little boy, knowing that I would most likely die in the process. In exchange, I put the life of one of my best friend's at risk. All because I didn't want to see another kid die. All because I was just so sick of the injustices of the Hunger Games…

_Was there some message in all of this?_ Was this just some way to promote more violence in the Hunger Games and encourage the people of the districts to be more and more self-focused?

Again, I shook my head. In addition to not crying, I had to make sure my thoughts didn't become too cynical. Thinking that negatively about society wasn't going to help me and it was especially no help to Lacy. To get my mind off those thoughts, I proceeded to walk over to the nearest training station and decided to learn whatever weapon was there. After arriving, I quickly looked at the equipment stands and noticed a lot of shields. Was this a station to train on defense?

Realizing that this wasn't a weapons station, I was about to walk over towards another station. Before I could though, the Capitol trainer at the station spotted me and smiled.

"Hey, you're the first tribute to stop by my station. Want to learn how to properly defend yourself, huh?" She asked me happily.

… _Well how can I leave her now if I was the first person to stop by?_

"Uh, yeah…" I mumbled in response with a nervous chuckle.

"Come on over then!" She exclaimed as she led me towards the equipment.

The station attendant gestured towards the different shields for me to use. I looked at all them intently before I grabbed a large, black shield in my hands. Holding it against me, it went down from my hand holding it towards my waist, covering a good portion of my body. When I grabbed it, I was expecting it to be too heavy for me to even reach, but the shield didn't feel overly heavy compared to what it looked like. I was pretty lucky to be a guy with a lot of muscle. It made lifting it a ton easier!

"Now, let's get you holding that shield properly." The station attendant told me as she walked over to me and grabbed my hands, adjusting my grip on the shield.

"Like this?" I questioned, my hands exactly where she put them.

"Yeah, that looks right to me." She noted with a smile on her face. She then proceeded to walk back over to the stand. "Now that you have the proper grip, let's test out how good you are at blocking attacks."

The station attendant then started to chuck different objects at me from her own stand: from bouncy balls to plastic knives. I was tasked to block them all with my shield. I moved, both my body and the shield, to block everything. She finished tossing things at me after about thirty different objects. Overall, I blocked twenty of her projectiles.

"Now, let's work on how you deal with some direct combat!" She exclaimed as she grabbed a plastic bat and charged after me.

For the next hour, I spent my time blocking the attacks of the Capitol trainer. She rotated back and forth from attacking me head-on with random melee weapons and attacking me from a distance with a bunch of throwing objects. Over the course of the hour, I got better with the shield and being able to withstand the attacks. Before I left after the hour, I was able to block all of her thrown weapons and I was able to withstand all of her melee attacks.

There was something about the shield that just appealed to me. I didn't know exactly what it was about it, but I really liked using it. If there was one lying in the cornucopia, I'd definitely rush for it.

Still, after the hour, I left the station and began to look for a weapons station to go to. A shield would help keep me safe, but it wouldn't be enough to be able to fight someone off…

"Hey Jason!"

I turned my head towards the source of the voice and saw Demi approaching me with a smile. She was walking towards me in a slightly zigzag manner. She was not walking straight, which gave me the impression that she may have been slightly drunk. At the very least, she was tipsy.

_Oh, Demi._ She had been drinking more-and-more ever since the Quarter Quell twist was announced. If she wasn't an alcoholic before then, she definitely was one now. I had sneaking suspicions that she was struggling with depression before getting reaped and that she was drinking to forget about things, but now she was even worse. The girl seemed to be absolutely miserable whenever she was completely sober: all because she has to fight to keep her best friend alive as well.

_This is just not right…_

Nevertheless, I ignored my thoughts and looked at the girl in front of me with a smile. Her mind was still very sharp and aware whenever she was drunk, so I didn't want her knowing that I pitied her. I'd assume that would offend her.

"Hey. How are you doing?" I asked her quietly. Talking to Demi still felt odd to me. I wasn't much of a talker in general and I didn't want to upset her or anything.

"Doing okay I guess." She replied. One of the things that I noticed that was unusual about Demi was that her speech was not really slurred when she was drunk. "Been spending most of my time at the camouflage station."

"And how is that going?" I questioned.

"Again, okay I guess. The only other tribute there when I got there was the little girl from District Seven and she was clearly better at it." Demi noted with a sigh. "I think she must have had some skill before she came here. Even the station attendant thinks she was godly at it. I tried to ask her for some tips and maybe make some loose alliance with her, but she wasn't interested in the slightest. She simply kept to herself and ignored me."

"I see." I noted. I rubbed the back of my head in a slightly awkward manner as I continued. "The girl from Seven doesn't seem the most open of people."

I didn't want to be too rude about her, but the girl from District Seven was a real loner. I, also, tried to talk to her yesterday when we were both at the edible plants station. She ignored me and eventually walked away after I tried to communicate with her another time. I assumed that she just didn't like other people.

"That's putting it mildly." Demi commented with a shrug.

"So what are you going to do now?" I asked her.

"Well, I was probably going to do the axe training station and practice there and maybe learn a thing or two about the weapon." She answered.

"The axe? Not a scythe?" I gave her a look of confusion. Demi knew how to use a scythe from working in the grain fields. She had mentioned to Einkorn and Flora that she was planning on using it as her preferred weapon, so why would she not go over there?

"I'm still going to want to use a scythe, but I want to learn another weapon. I'm not the only scythe user here, so I want to make sure that if there was only one in the cornucopia, I would have a weapon I could use." She answered. I noticed that she shivered slightly at the mention of another 'scythe user'.

_Not that I could blame her. _The boy from District Ten was an absolute creep. Even before yesterday, he seemed very intimidating and dangerous. Then, he attacked the girl from District Eleven and tried to kill her before the actual Hunger Games. That was when we all realized that he was a legitimate psychopath who should be avoided at all costs.

Instinctively, my eyes scanned the area to find him. A few seconds was all it took: the boy was, once again, alone at the scythe training station. He was slaughtering his mannequins without a care in the world about anything around him. I did notice that there were peacekeepers present around the station. All of them were studying the District Ten boy intently. I assumed that they were watching him to make sure he didn't try and go after someone else again…

A few seconds of silence passed by before I turned away from the boy and focused my attention on Demi again.

"Well, if you are going to the axe station, do you care if I go with you?" I asked.

Demi's eyes widened slightly in response. She looked at me in a way that made me almost want to shrink into my own shadow.

"… Well, if you want, go ahead. I can't stop you." The girl shrugged in response.

"Well, um, okay." I mumbled in response, not sure exactly what to say back.

The two of us walked together in the direction of the axe station. There was a silence that floated over us that made me uncomfortable. I had absolutely no clue what to say to her or if I should talk to her. Demi had this effect on me. She would give me these strange looks and seemed to be judging everything I say and do. She didn't seem to understand me at all, and I had no understanding of her. We were district partners: shouldn't we at least know a little bit about each other?

"Hey… Jason?" Demi spoke my name.

"Yeah?" I asked quickly, eager for some conversation to break this silence.

"Well, I don't know if anyone's approached you with an alliance yet, but no one has tried to make one with me… other than the boy from District Seven, but I don't trust him at all. So, well, do you want to work with me in the arena?" She asked me quietly.

My eyes widened at her offer. _She wants to work with me?_

Demi noticed my eyes and she quickly shook her head. "You don't have to if you don't want to. It was just an offer-"

"No, I'd love to." I stated, interrupting her.

Demi blinked in response at my interruption. I blushed in response, rubbing the back of my head nervously. I probably looked like an idiot for responding so abruptly like that. I didn't want her thinking I was a creep or anything.

My fears of being seen as a 'creep' disappeared though when Demi actually smiled in response. My eyes widened again. This was the first time I saw a legitimate smile from the girl and it suited her face well. She looked beautiful…

"Awesome. I'm glad that we won't have to face the arena alone." She stated happily.

"Er, yeah…" I mumbled in reply with a nervous chuckle, trying to hide a blush in my face.

We walked the rest of the way to the axe station again in silence. This time, though, it felt a little more comfortable to me for some reason.

I still had doubts about whether or not I would be able to truly fight in the Hunger Games. I definitely did not think I could kill someone. But one thing I did know was that Demi and I were working together and I would work my hardest to make that we both survived!

* * *

**Victoire McBlock's POV – District 2 Female**

"Very impressive Victoire!" The Capitol trainer commented as he watched me practice.

"Thank you." I replied politely before I turned my attention to some wooden targets. I proceeded to crack the whip in my hand before striking them. I hit each of them with the whip before I cracked the whip on the ground to indicate that I finished.

I made sure to devote extensive time to every weapon I had trained with in preparation for the Hunger Games. Although I still considered myself better with the boomerang, I was good with a whip. If it was the first thing I could get my hands on in the cornucopia, I would definitely be able to use and fight with it.

Perhaps it was because of my childhood dream to win the Hunger Games, or perhaps it was because of the added pressure of the Quarter Quell twist and that Cameron's life was at risk as well, but I felt more motivated to work on my training. I didn't waste a single second in all of my time in the training halls. I needed to be ready for anything and ready to use anything before I entered the Hunger Games arena!

"You're a natural. I guess that should be expected from a District Two tribute, but I'm still impressed." The station attendant complimented me with a smile, one that I was quick to return. His eyes then wandered to his left and the smile disappeared. It was replaced with a frown. "God, Raegae are you even trying?"

I turned my head to face the boy from District Seven, the only guy to ever come to the station. I noticed that the boy, Raegae, had been wandering to each station trying to practice with as many weapons as he could. Here, he was grumbling to himself as he held the whip improperly. A frown crept onto my face as I looked at the boy trying to use the weapon. _Did the boy listen at all to the Capitol instructor teaching him?_

A few seconds passed by before the station attendant and sighed and went back to the stand in front of the station. Raegae mumbled more words to himself before he turned his eyes towards me.

"Hey girl, you get this shit, don't you? Care to help me out?" He asked.

"Um…" I looked downward, feeling uncomfortable. It wasn't in my nature to deny people help and the District Seven boy _clearly_ needed the help if he actually wanted to use a whip, but I was going to go into the Hunger Games with him. It would be stupid for me to help him with a weapon, in case if we end up fighting against each other in the arena.

"Don't want to help me out, do you? Figured." Raegae grumbled, shaking his head in frustration.

For a moment, I felt bad for the boy. I even, against my better judgment, started to debate in my head whether I should help him out with the whip. Before I made a decision in my debate, though, I noticed a change in his demeanor. The boy proceeded to stop shaking his head and looked at me with a grin on his face and a look in his eyes that disturbed me. It felt… perverted.

"Well, if you don't want to help out with that, then you could probably help me relieve some stress, if you know what I mean. I'm sure you know how to use that whip in another way, right?" He commented slyly.

My eyes widened immediately. _Did he just…?_

"Excuse me?" I asked him, both in shock and disgust.

I understood the innuendo, but Raegae didn't catch on to that. Instead, his grin seemed to develop further and his eyes started to lower from my face to the rest of my body. His eyes were now focused almost exclusively on my chest.

"So I take it you don't know that, huh? Well, you're in luck that I know a thing or two about that. Maybe during the lunch break I can be the one to teach you on how to actually use a whip." Raegae commented with the same 'sly' tone-of-voice.

My grip on the whip in my hands tightened. I could feel the anger run through my veins as I glared at him.

"… If I were you, I'd leave." I spoke in a quiet tone-of-voice.

"Huh? Why?" He questioned as he started to walk closer to me. "Trust me, you'll like-"

I immediately cracked the whip on the ground. Raegae backed away immediately in surprise. His eyes wandered to the whip. Then, they turned back to me. He was now returning my glare with one of his own.

"You think you're too good for me, I take it. Of course you do. Not a damn person here respects me. Well, you can go fuck yourself too. I'll be looking forward to seeing you die!" He hissed at me.

Raegae proceeded to toss his whip towards the Capitol attendant before he stormed away in some random direction.

I really hated guys like him. He seemed to have no respect for any of the people around him – especially women, based on the way he was looking and talking to me. I was starting to regret even considering helping him!

I watched the boy leave for a few seconds before I huffed in anger and returned to the training station. I then started to try and attack more targets with the whip.

Normally when I was angry or irritated, I would do yoga. I practiced it every day and it was very therapeutic. It kept me calm and my emotions in balance whenever I was feeling overly frustrated about something. Perhaps I would do another session at the end of the day back in the District Two living quarters, but I couldn't do a session now. Instead, I used my whip to beat out my anger. It was not nearly as effective as yoga was to calm me down, but it did help release some of my negative emotions and calm me down.

Thirty minutes passed before a loud bell rang through the training hall. It was now time for the lunch break. Feeling calmer, both from time and from releasing my anger, I returned the whip to the Capitol trainer and started to walk towards the dining area.

After I grabbed my tray of food, a plate of some weird Capitol-style soup, I started to look for a place to sit. I really did enjoy talking to people and making new friends, so I wanted to sit with someone. The only problem was that I didn't really know who I was supposed to actually sit with, since the Careers never sat with each other during the lunch breaks.

Ariail, Alaska, Kendra, and Lepolio were all aloof. Ariail and Alaska were, in particular, very anti-social. The career leader usually spent his lunch break smoking at his table and glared at anyone that dared to look at him. Alaska, for her part, simply moved her tray any time someone tried to sit next to her.

I tried to sit next to Kendra on the first day of training. I quickly found out that trying to talk with her would always be a disaster, as she started to talk about strategies for the arena and my opinions of the other tributes. While I did attempt to participate in the conversation, it was very draining. It also bothered me that the one time I tried to talk to her about her personal life, she stopped talking and simply glared at me in response. Obviously, she had no desire to get to know me or for me to get to know her…

Yesterday, I tried to sit and talk with Lepolio. When I put my tray next to his, he immediately informed me that he was not in the mood to talk. He hasn't been since the Quarter Quell twist. _Understandable._ He was still upset about his son. I completely understood and, to some degree, agreed with his thoughts. I was still really, really upset about the twist and the fact that Cameron's life was in my hands. He was my little brother and the person I probably got along with the most back home. I couldn't imagine him dying.

It may sound weird to some, but I wasn't worried about me possibly dying – I was more worried about my brother's life.

I shook my head, pushing the thoughts of my brother out of my head. I already cried the night of the Quarter Quell twist announcement in my bedroom, and that was enough. It was pointless to cry and worry about it any longer. It would only negatively affect my performance, and I needed to make sure that I performed perfectly to keep Cameron alive!

Instead, I looked over the remaining tables and spotted the final remaining member of the Career Pack – Cascade. He was a relatively quiet boy, but he didn't seem like he truly hated talking to people. Perhaps I could sit next to him?

With that in mind, I walked over to his table and placed my tray of food down.

"Hey Cascade." I greeted him.

Cascade looked up from his own food and stared at me with surprised eyes. A moment passed before the surprise faded and he gave me a slightly uneasy smile back. "Hey Victoire. What's up?"

"Not much. Just finished a good training session and now I could use some lunch before continuing." I told him with a smile as I put a spoon into my soup. "How about you? How's your training been going?"

"Well, not too bad actually." He answered with an indifferent shrug. "Just another basic day at the spear stand. I also went over to the survival area and practiced how to make a fire."

"Good to know that we have one career that knows how to make a fire. That's probably the hardest thing for me!" I mumbled in disappointment. It was sort of embarrassing, but it was the truth. Fire-making just did not come naturally to me. I was going to have to spend more time at the station once lunch was over and work on it. It was going to be bad if I can't make a fire before the Hunger Games started. Once the Career Pack was over and I was off on my own, I would definitely need to know how to make a fire for myself.

"You can't make a fire?" Cascade questioned in surprise. I nodded my head again. A small grin developed on his face. "Well, what can I say? You just need more practice. It takes some time for someone to _warm up_ to the art of fire-making."

I was about to eat a spoonful of my soup, but I stopped myself. I proceeded to laugh slightly loudly in response to Cascade's joke.

"Wow, that was cheesy!" I told him between my laughter.

"I've got a couple of jokes just like that. My older brother, Dylan, told me that I can be funny from time to time." Cascade informed me with a chuckle of his own.

"Well, I have to say he's right about that." I stated as my laughter finally started to stop. "What's your brother like?"

"My brother?" Cascade repeated in surprise. I nodded my head, which caused the boy to scratch his head uneasily. "Well, he's nineteen years old and he works at a fish-packing factory. We get along really well and he's a cool guy. He can be really annoying at times, but he's been there in my life and I miss him…"

"I completely understood. I miss my siblings too." I mumbled in response as I thought of my own family.

I missed all of my siblings. I missed Malia and Tatia, my three-year old twin sisters, and there adorable shenanigans. I missed my other younger sister, Alexis, despite the fact that she could be kinda bratty when she didn't get way. I even missed my anti-social older brother, Trent, who I haven't heard from even before I left for the Hunger Games. And, of course, I missed Cameron…

I knew exactly what I was getting myself into when I volunteered. It's not going to affect me at all to be away from them. I knew I just had to win and come back home, and then I could give each of my siblings and our parents a better life! Still, it felt so weird to be apart from them for so long.

"What are your siblings like?" Cascade asked me out of curiosity.

A grin developed on my face. _Finally, I had someone I could make some legitimate conversation with!_

With that thought in mind, Cascade and I continued to talk over our lunch, slowly learning more and more about each other. Maybe the rest of the Career Pack didn't care to learn about each other, but Cascade and I certainly were interested in making a friend or two. It was nice to just have someone to have a relaxed conversation with.

Although, I had to push the image of a deceased Cascade out of my head. I knew that it was going to have to happen at some point, but I tried my best to ignore it and focus on simply making a new friend and learning about his life.

* * *

**Booker Comston's POV – District 6 Male**

Like every day so far in the training sessions, I ate lunch alone. I really had no interest in communicating with the other tributes. Time went by slowly, giving me plenty of time to think about the current situation and my future plans for the arena.

These training days have been odd. As a vigilante-figure of sorts in District Six, I am familiar with using weapons. I'm also comfortable with fighting and, in some cases, killing criminals. Having said that, my fighting style utilized different tools and weapons than the weapons provided here. My primary weapons were brass knuckles and guns – not swords, bows, and whatever weaponry they had here.

After trying my hand at nearly every weapon station here, I resolved myself to perfecting my hand-to-hand combat. My fighting style with just my bare hands was very similar to my style with brass knuckles. I just needed to be careful with my fists. Perhaps if I proved myself adept enough, I could actually get one of my preferred weapons from a sponsor or something. It wasn't unprecedented for a sponsor to give tributes great weapons and, if I could get enough sponsors, I could maybe even get a gun to use.

Whichever weapon I was able to get, I needed to make sure I earned in fast. Thanks to the Quarter Quell twist, I had to fight in my father's stead here… and I also had a few criminals to personally execute.

My eyes wandered the dining area immediately, looking for these criminals. It didn't take long for me to find them: Alexandra Varas and Logan Faber were sitting at separate tables away from everyone else. Both of them were devouring their soup vigorously without a care in the world….

I knew exactly what types of crimes Alexandra committed back in District Six. She was a thief who stole from the good people of the district, and she was going to be dealt with accordingly. Logan, on the other hand, was someone I was uncertain about. Perhaps I was being hasty with the 'criminal' label, but I was rather certain that he must have been a murderer. I've dealt with enough murderous scum like him that had the same twisted look in their eyes and faces. Logan had a lot of similarities with a variety of murders in District Six. Furthermore, he attempted to kill the girl from District Eleven, Miss Florina Everett, unprovoked despite the regulations forbidding us from fighting the other tributes. Even if I was somehow incorrect in my suspicions about previous murderers, he was definitely guilty of attempted murder and I was going to make sure he received his proper punishment.

_They'll both be executed by my hand._ I promised myself I would remove the world of all criminals, and those two are no exceptions to that rule!

"Hey, um, Booker Comston right? Excuse me!" A voice called out to me.

I turned away from my thoughts and faced the source of the voice. There, standing in front of me, was Ms. Florina Everett. _How odd. I was just thinking about her and the situation with Logan. _

"Yes, that is my name." I nodded in acknowledgment. "How are you doing Miss Everett?"

"'Ms. Everett?'" She repeated the name with a frown on her face before shaking her head. "Um, don't take this too personally, but don't call me that. That makes me sound a lot older than I am! I mean, if I was like maybe four or five years older than I am now, you could call me that. But no, just call me Florina! That's who I am to everyone else!"

"I was just trying to be polite, but if you'd prefer me to call you Florina, then so be it." I responded, chuckling slightly at her response. "How are you feeling today?"

"I'm doing great, thank you. Feeling much better than I have been in a while!" She answered cheerfully. "Mind if I sit down? I know we only have a few more minutes until the lunch break ends, so hopefully I won't be too much of a bother!"

I shrugged in response. "I was just thinking. If you want to sit down, go ahead. It's not much of a bother."

"Thanks!" Florina stated as she sat down.

As she sat down, I took a good look at the girl. For someone who was nearly killed yesterday, she appeared to be in good spirits. It was surprising to me, but also relieving. It was good to know that she was doing okay. She seemed to be a good person and didn't deserve any of the crap that she got yesterday.

Besides, her good mood was certainly contagious. I felt myself smile a little at just how happy she seemed.

"So, well…" Florina mumbled as she started to poke her fingers together. "Okay, this may sound a little weird, but I was wondering if you'd like to maybe ally together in the arena… if that'd be okay with you that is!"

"Hmm?" I looked at her in surprise. "You want to work with me? And not someone else?"

To be completely honest, I worked better solo. Back in District Six, I worked by myself hunting down criminals – I didn't want anyone else risking their life with me. I knew that I would be able to take care of myself in the arena. Besides, I was entering the Games with a very specific agenda. While I did need to win in order to ensure that my father would remain alive, I also needed to personally kill the criminals Alexandra and Logan. I had a very specific reason to fight in the Hunger Games and I doubted any of the other tributes would care to assist me in my mission.

"Of course I'd want to work with you! Do you want a list of reasons?" Florina told me as she pulled out a piece of paper from the pocket in her pants.

My eyes widened in shock. _She cared that much to make a list?_

"You wrote a list of reasons why you want to ally with me?"

"Well, it's more of a list of your characteristics I observed. I did one for all of the tributes here!" She replied with a little uneasy laugh. "It's, um, something I like to do. I like making lists and keeping track of my observations."

"Oh. I see." The surprise left my face and I simply nodded in response. She was just a very observant girl who liked to keep track of the people around her. Curiosity soon developed though as I gave the girl with glasses a strange a look. "Then what characteristics make you so interested in working with me?"

"Well, you're very strong. Besides the muscles, I saw you at the weight-lifting station and the hand-to-hand combat station and you were doing VERY good. You seem proficient with a lot of the weapons you tried and just seem like you can handle yourself well in a fight." Florina answered cheerfully. "But more than that, you just seem like a dependable guy. I'd like to think I can read people well, and you seem really nice. You're very polite and respectful when you talk and you seem very passionate in what matters to you. I also think you're very sweet and brave."

Once again, my eyes widened. I openly gaped in surprise as she went on-and-on. I didn't think of myself nearly this special. _Did she really see me like this me? Me?_ I wasn't anything too special. Not in my eyes at least.

Florina looked downward, blushing slightly in embarrassment before she continued. "Um… and I also need to thank you properly for yesterday. I never did and I felt about it, but… really, thank you for stepping in with the whole situation with Logan."

I quickly shook my head in response. _So that's why she was interested. _

"Florina, I didn't interfere yesterday to make you feel indebted to me. You don't have to make up some observations and become my ally just because of that. I was doing that because it was the right thing to do." I told her sincerely.

"I know you didn't. That's not what I'm trying to say. Don't think that's what I mean!" The girl replied hastily, a frown developing on her face. "All I'm trying to do is thank you for all that you did yesterday. I thought you were really brave and it showed your character, and honestly, I would want to work with a guy like you. It's not because you saved me: it's because of the type of guy that you are. I couldn't think of a better person to ally with!"

Silence filled the table. I looked at her intently, studying her.

Was she being serious? She saw that much in my character? I didn't think much of my involvement in the affair between her and Logan. It was instinctual. I always reacted first whenever I saw some injustice occur. It felt so foreign to hear someone say such things about me.

It actually made me happy.

"Florina, I'm more than willing to work with you if you want, but you should be aware that I'm not going to be going into the Games just to play passively. I'm going in after two tributes in particular, one of which being Logan." I told her bluntly. "Are you okay with that?"

Florina said nothing in response. She looked downward a little for a few seconds before she looked back up to me with a conflicted look in her eyes.

"The other target is your district partner, isn't it? The one you think is a thief." She questioned.

I nodded in response. "I _know_ she is a thief."

"Well… I'm not really comfortable with hunting and killing, but I guess it is the Hunger Games. And I really do want to work with you. I think we could do very well together…" She answered. The conflicted emotion remained in her eyes, but the girl gave me a look that showed me that she was determined and confident. "I'm okay with that. I'm still willing to work with you."

_Heh. This girl…_

I had not expected to find someone willing to work with me in my mission. Yet, here she was. Florina seemed most upset about having to kill anyone, but I would make sure she wouldn't to. I was going to be the one to take down Alexandra and Logan.

The idea of an alliance with her now seemed very appealing. I really liked the idea of working with her. It would be nice to actually have someone to talk to and work with. I didn't have that luxury back in District Six, so I was very excited about having a friend in the arena to watch my back.

"Well, if you're willing to work with that, then I can't say no. We'll make a good team." I responded with a smile.

The reaction was instantaneous. Florina smiled brightly at me and proceeded to give me a hug.

"You're right about that!" She giggled happily. "Thank you so much again Booker. I promise, you won't regret it!"

"Er, yeah. No problem… I won't regret it." I mumbled out a response uneasily as I returned her hug. I mentally cursed at how awkward I most likely seemed. Her hug took me by surprise. I was not used to physical contact with many of the people around me – let alone a girl around my age. It felt so foreign to me, yet it also felt nice…

A few seconds after we broke the hug, the bell rang throughout the training hall, signaling the end of the lunch break. Florina and I both stood up in unison as we started to look at the other training stations.

"We should probably go back to training. I'm probably going to go learn a few more things about edible plants, in case we need to find food." Florina told me.

"That's not a bad idea at all." I commented with a shudder. I was actually slightly concerned about the survival aspect of the Hunger Games, such as finding food that wouldn't kill me from poison. "I may come with you."

"Go right ahead. Just follow me!" She declared happily as she stared to walk away.

With a light chuckle, I followed her behind. It was still odd to think that I actually was an alliance. I really thought I would be going into the Hunger Games alone. It was comforting to know, though, that I had one ally with me during the fight of my life, and I'm sure she felt similarly to me.

* * *

**Bane Darnell's POV – District 11 Male**

"No, no, no Bane. You are still holding the knives the wrong way!" The capitol attendant scolded me with a loud groan that did little to hide his frustration. "Are you even trying?"

"I-I'm sorry… is this better?" I stuttered in response, making a slight adjustment to my grip.

"Not really kid. Honestly, I'd advise you go look for a different weapon to learn." The trainer stated coldly. "To put it as politely as possible, the knife just doesn't seem like the ideal weapon for you."

I said nothing, making an effort to look as if I was stunned at the proclamation. A few seconds passed before I shook my head in defiance, tightening my grip on the knives as tears ran down my face. "I can do it. Y-You'll see!"

The station attendant rolled his eyes in response. He didn't believe I had any chance, and neither did the other tributes at the station: Alaska Dayte, Yaro Hailstien, Kaylee Harper, and Winnie Goldstein all gave me a look that showed me what they thought my fate was going to be.

Everything was still going according to plan.

To be completely honest, I was surprised at how easy it was to fool everyone. I thought when it came time to actually interact and function around the tributes, I would do something subtle that would blow my cover. Nevertheless, no one seemed to catch on. It was almost too perfect. I finally could control my image to the people around me. The more they underestimated me, the better. It gave me time to fly under the radar of everyone's target-list and sit back and observe everyone through my 'tear-filled' eyes.

I had honestly never felt as powerful in my life as I did now. The feeling was almost an addicting one.

"You've been improving a lot Kaylee. Quite the skill you've developed in just a few days!" The station attendant praised Kaylee as he watched her throw a knife at a target.

"That's what I've been telling her these past few days. She's getting too good if you ask me." Yaro commented with a shake of his head in mock-jealousy. "Can't have her constantly outperform me!"

"I'm only better at throwing them and you know me. Stop with the constant praise: it's embarrassing." Kaylee grumbled quietly, concentrating on the knives in her hand solely and trying to ignore the boy from District Twelve.

"Why? Everyone needs a little praise from time to time." The boy responded with a chuckle.

"Yeah, but not constantly. Focus on yourself for once." She replied with a slight eye roll.

I chuckled inwardly at their banter. I had observed the two of them interact with each other and the girl from District Twelve, Emery Aspen, and they were all, admittedly, very entertaining. They had an interesting dynamic that benefitted from their differing personalities. In some ways, I was surprised that they didn't outright hate each other. Nevertheless, it appeared as if for the arena, they were willing to overcome these personality differences to team up. I was quick to catch on to their alliance and I knew they would be dangerous later in the Games. All three of them were certainly capable, with Kaylee being the most deadly in my opinion. She definitely had a certain ruthlessness in her demeanor that made me think she would be willing to kill.

If I ever engaged against them, she would be the one I would be most cautious around. She would also be the one I would definitely prioritize to kill.

For another hour, I faked a lack of skill with the knife while I continued to observe the other tributes there. Yaro and Kaylee were both improving at a rather good pace. Alaska was superior to them however with her knives: it was expected from a girl from one of the Career districts. Even Winnie was impressive. She was actually pretty decent with her stance with the knives for a girl her age. There was definitely a chance she could make it out of the bloodbath and I would be very interested in seeing how she would handle the actual Hunger Games. Not that I would ever make it too far. Sooner or later, she would have to die.

I wasn't completely comfortable with killing the other tributes. Growing up in an apothecary shop with my mother and my grandparents taught me the importance of the human life. I suppose some of their teachings rubbed off on me and I knew I was going to feel guilty when I cut someone down. None of the other tributes deserved this fate: we were all here due to a grudge the Capitol had with the districts. Nevertheless, I knew I was going to have to kill. Besides the fact that I had no interest in dying myself, I had to fight for my father.

With a sigh, I put away my knife and walked away to a survival station on poisons to brush on my knowledge. Along the way, I spent my time thinking about my father.

Growing up, I always had some sort of resentment towards him. He was the one who made me a bastard and it was his horrible status in District Eleven that strained people's opinion of me. I was also just simply angry with his behavior. He was a philanderer and I was sick of it. Couldn't he just stick with one woman for fuck's safe? Couldn't he have stayed with my mother and we could have all lived a normal, functional life?

Despite this, he was my father and he did do his part to be in my life, albeit in a strange way. He made sure to keep me trained in case I was ever reaped. I knew he cared for me and he did do his part to provide for me in whatever way he could. I had a lot of resentment towards him, but I could never hate him and I never wished him to die. That was the last thing I wanted to happen! Therefore, I had to fight. I had to make sure I got out of the arena so that he can continue to live.

A few seconds passed before I arrived at the poison survival station. I shook my head, brushing the thoughts of my father away. Instead, I focused on my memories at the apothecary shop with my mother and grandparents as I started to review poisons side-by-side with the girl from District Five, Stephanie Volk.

"'Starplant Root: only a minor poison. Not lethal, but it can certainly cause a variety of symptoms, such as diarrhea and vomiting.'" Stephanie read aloud to herself the information of one poison. She quickly moved on to another one. "'Marluxia Flowers: very lethal in high-doses. High concentration of the roots of the flower in the bloodstream can lead to an increase in blood pressure and can lead to heart failure if not treated.'"

I shook my head in response, but made no outward comment. While the roots were indeed poisonous, the petals of the flower were actually rather harmless. In fact, they were a common ingredient in a few of the potions and remedies my grandfather used with patients. If anything, the Marluxia Flower was a natural medication and a potential life-saver. However, I was going to hold on to that information for myself.

The rest of the training period was spent reviewing my knowledge of poisons and natural medicines. A few more hours passed by before the bell rang loudly, ending the training day. Stephanie and I eventually stopped our review and said farewell to the station attendant. We then walked away, heading in the direction towards our district partners.

It didn't take long for me to find Florina. She was busy chatting with the District Six boy, Booker Comston. I saw that they sat at lunch together and went to a few training stations together afterwards. It was most likely safe to say that they were aligning with each other.

As I studied them, I noticed a bright red blush on Florina's face. She and Booker may not be aware of it, but I was starting to suspect that she was developing feelings for the boy from District Six. It would make sense if she did. He was probably considered a handsome guy to anyone interested in men and Florina's first interaction with him involved him saving her life from Logan. In a situation as dramatic as that, strong feelings and emotions were most definitely going to be established in her unconscious mind. For her sake, though, I hope was overlooking that. Any relationship that she established with him would only end badly for the two of them.

I continued my approach towards her. After a few more seconds, Florina finally noticed me. She said goodbye to Booker before she quickly walked over to me with a bright smile on her face.

"Hey Bane! How are you doing?" She greeted me cheerfully. "How was training? Was it a good day for you?"

"Hi…" I mumbled in response, keeping my mask on. "Um, training was okay I guess. I spent most of my time reviewing survival stuff."

"Yeah, I did the same. That's the most important aspect of the Hunger Games, after all. As dangerous as the other tributes are, the arena itself is just as dangerous, if not more so. I mean, we at least know what to expect from the other tributes! We have no idea what's going to be waiting for us in the arena!" Florina exclaimed in her usual dramatic, verbose manner. "Therefore, survival knowledge is the most important thing of all! We need to have some foundation to fight against the arena!"

"Yeah, I agree." I replied with a smile. She was indeed right, although I would have made a similar statement in fewer words.

The two of us walked over to the elevator doors and quickly got in our elevator. We then made our ascent towards the District Eleven living quarters.

"It's weird to think that this was our last day to train. That's all of the preparations we are going to have. We're gonna get dumped into the arena soon, aren't we? All we have left is the gamemaker session and the interview, and then it'll be time for the Hunger Games." Florina commented with a sigh.

"Yeah. It's weird." I replied with a sigh. "I'm really nervous."

"Me too." She nodded in agreement.

That wasn't me trying to come across as weak. I really was worried. As confident as I was in my mask, I couldn't help but be worried about the Games. There were just so many variables that I couldn't account for yet. What if the Careers want to target a weak tribute first and they perceive me as the weakest? What if I actually didn't learn enough in the training sessions and I'm not able to survive? What if I can't handle one of the arena's traps or mutts and I die fighting it? Then all of this effort would have been for nothing and I would have died a humiliating death, and my father would be promptly executed.

Immediately, I shook my head in response, rejecting the thoughts.

"What are you thinking about?" Florina questioned quietly as she looked at me behind her glasses.

"Well, just about the Hunger Games." I sighed in response. "They're going to be impossible. But we can't give up. We have to try and fight. It's important to try and come home and keep our family alive."

"… Mmm." She hummed in agreement. A small, sad smile appeared on her face. "You're brave Bane. I know I have to fight and I'm scared just like you, but I'm still trying to get my mind wrapped around this. I think I'm still too afraid about dying and… my Dad dying with me…"

A frown developed on my face. Florina's father, and our mentor, was chosen as the person closest to her. Although it was probably nice that she got to see her loved one before going into the arena, it probably did bother her seeing him every day. He was most likely a constant reminder about what the cost would be if she died.

Whoever thought of this twist was fucked up. One of these days, the Capitol would burn. All I could hope for right now was that I will win these Games so that my father and I could be alive to watch the president's government die.

The elevator eventually stopped at our living quarters and the door opened. We were both greeted by the sight of Onyx Everett.

"Hi Dad…" Florina mumbled quietly. I felt a little bad as I looked at her. Bringing up the situation with her dad probably put her in a bad mood. The girl looked as if she was going to cry at any second.

"Are you okay Florina? Did something bad happen during training?" Onyx asked in concern.

Florina gave no verbal response. Instead, she simply rushed to him and started to cry into his shoulder. He quickly gave her a hug, holding him tightly against his body.

The two seemingly forgot I was there. I decided to leave the room and head to my bedroom to give them some alone time. The two most likely needed it.

I don't know what I would do if I was in Florina's shoes and I had my father here. What would I even say to him? I had so many things that I really, really wanted to talk to him about. I wanted to tell him how much I appreciated him for training me and giving me what was most likely a fighting chance in the arena. I wanted to question him about his other 'lovers' and try and figure out for the umpteenth time why he never wanted to settle down with my mother.

More than anything else, though, I just wanted to give him a hug and tell him that I was sorry for putting his life at risk this year in the Hunger Games…

A few tears ran down my face: real tears. I quickly rubbed them away as I laid on my bed.

Tomorrow was going to be the day where we had our meeting with the gamemakers. I was still undecided with how I was going to approach it. Should I reveal some of my skills and try for a high score in an attempt to get some sponsors? Or should I continue with my 'weak' mask and make sure the other tributes didn't suspect anything about me? There was a lot of thinking I needed to do about tomorrow. I couldn't afford to be crying about my father and some hypothetical meeting with him. I had to do my best and fight with him so I could actually have a conversation with him back in the District Eleven.

With that in my mind, I closed my eyes in thought as I began to debate about what I should do for the gamemaker meeting tomorrow.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! Here is the next chapter. And this concludes the training chapters :) What did you think of them all? I tried to write them in different ways and make the points-of-view during them as unique as I could to make sure they all felt fresh to each of you. Hopefully that worked as I planned!

The next chapter will be the meeting with the Gamemakers and the training scores. We are actually getting closer and closer to the actual arena, and I'm getting more and more nervous. And excited! :D

I don't have too much too say right now. Just that I'm really excited to get working on the next chapter! Let me know what you all thought of this chapter and any opinions you had on the tributes here. The next chapter will begin soon and will be up as soon as I finish! I'll see you guys then :)


	12. The Gamemaker Session: Earning the Score

**Kendra Perone's POV – District 1 Female**

At the beginning of the day, instead of the usual training hall, the tributes were required to go to a large waiting room filled with comfy chairs and nothing else. We were waiting for our turn to enter the training hall to show the gamemakers what we were capable of. All the days of training were leading up to this moment. After today, we would be given a ranked score that would help us get the sponsors we needed in the arena. Not that I was worried about sponsorships or anything. I was a career and I was in the Career Pack. Sponsorships were pretty much the only thing that I could guarantee would be there in the arena.

The only things really of note in the waiting room were a set of brown doors that led to the training hall and the peacekeepers that stood across the walls of the room. Each of them had their eyes on all of us, making sure we did nothing stupid, like tried to kill each other, escape, or something along those lines.

Immediately after entering the room, Ariail and I walked over to a few chairs near the brown doors. We were the first district to arrive, therefore, we had free reign to any seats we wanted. I was bored within seconds of sitting down. There was honestly nothing to look at and nothing to do. I couldn't train at a station, I couldn't read a book, and I was going to be forced to wait for them to call out my name for the gamemaker session. Thank whatever god was out there for letting District One be the first district to present. I doubt I would be able to wait if I was in District Twelve.

Ariail and I made no attempts to talk to each other, just the way I preferred it. This silence was ended though when the other districts started to arrive. Districts Two, Three, and Four came in simultaneously a few seconds after we sat down. Once they came in, Ariail immediately signaled to the other tributes in the Career Pack. The four other members started to walk towards us.

_Fan-fucking-tastic. Another group meeting. _

There was no point to constantly meet up with the other careers. Everyone in the alliance knew that we were all working together. We all knew what weapons we were going to use and we all had a general idea on what to do in the bloodbath. This was needless socializing, and I was not interested in it in the slightest. I may be willing to work with these people, but I did not want to have any unnecessary conversations with them. I had no interest in getting close to anyone again. I'd much rather we all be in our separate corners and not speak to each other.

"Good morning." Victoire greeted both Ariail and me with a smile. "You both ready for today?"

"We've all been ready before the first day of training. This will be just be a useless formality. We walk in, show-off a little, and collect our high training score and the sponsorships." Ariail declared immediately with a smug grin.

Ariail had a very condescending way of talking that pissed me off, but he was usually right on things like this. This was not something I was worried about, and this was coming from a girl who considered herself a paranoid, overly-cautious person in general. I had gone through training back in District One and had prepared for the Games during the past few years with my boyfriend, Matthias. Of all things, the _fucking Gamemaker Session_ was the least of my worries.

"Any plans on what you all are going to show the Gamemakers?" Cascade asked as he and the rest of the Career Pack took their seats.

I shook my head in response, refusing to dignify that question with an answer. _Yeah, ask about our plans for a private session with the Gamemakers. I'm sure we will all answer honestly. _

"They are private sessions Cascade. It's none of your business." Alaska reminded him with an eye roll.

"We're all going to be working with each other in the arena anyway. It's not like we'll be hiding too much from each other once we're in there, so what's the fucking big deal?" Cascade snapped back at her, giving his district partner a glare. It wasn't much of a secret that they disliked each other. It was only a little less hostile than my relationship with Ariail.

"Nevertheless, they're private. None of us should share our plans." I spoke up, echoing Alaska's thoughts.

Cascade turned his head towards me before he sighed and looked downward, accepting that he was out-numbered in this little debate.

"Regardless of whether we intend on sharing our plans, remember this: everyone here must receive an eight of higher. If any of you get lower than that, you will be removed from the Career Pack." Ariail informed us sharply as he crossed his arms.

"Because getting an eight will be so difficult for any of us." I rolled my eyes at his decree.

Ariail glared at me in response to my sarcasm, which in turn caused me to grin. I was really starting to enjoy our little interactions. Ariail took himself way too seriously and it was so easy to get under his skin. It made him predictable: a trait that I really enjoyed in an ally. There was no doubt that later in the arena, I would be able to manipulate our 'leader' into doing something stupid to get himself killed just through a few taunts and words. This meant that I had one less major threat to deal with to win the Games.

"I'm not doubting anyone here, Kendra. I'm just reminding everyone about the score. We are the careers for this year and we have a legacy to uphold. It is essential we impress the Gamemakers, who have had to see many of different Career Packs over the years." Ariail informed me sharply.

_Legacy? _Ariail was entirely full of shit. Who honestly cared about living up to a legacy? I'm not trying to impress the damn Capitol audience or anyone back home. I'm here for the adventure of the Hunger Games and I was here to win it – both for me and for Zelena!

Nevertheless, I said nothing. Neither did any of the rest of the careers. With that declaration, the Career Pack fell into sweet, enjoyable silence. Being around the other careers was enjoyable to me when no one was jabbering on-and-on about whatever. I could only hope that during the arena, we wouldn't have any needless discussions like our damn meetings.

With nothing else to do, I turned to look around the room to the other tributes. The District Nine tributes were just walking into the room. Only three more districts were left to arrive. Once they arrived, then we could finally start this thing.

_District Ten, District Eleven, and District Twelve: hurry the fuck up already!_

My eyes turned back to the rest of the Careers. I began to study each and every one of them, as I did each day during the training periods.

Each of us had our own specialties from what I observed. Alaska was the fastest tribute amongst us and seemed the best at trapping – an excellent strength when hunting tributes. Cascade was the best with survival knowledge, which would make him a valuable tool during the beginning few days in the arena. Victoire was easily the best tribute here in regards to long-range weaponry. In close-range fighting, Ariail and I probably tied as the best tribute. Even though I would never admit this to his face, the two of us were very even in skill. I had to admit, a straight-up fight between the two of us would be very interesting. That would probably never happen, as I could easily manipulate him into killing himself off in a much safer way for me, but I couldn't help but be slightly curious about how we would compete against each other.

Nearly all of the careers were easy to predict exactly what they were skilled with. It made it easy for me to plan exactly how I would take them down later in the Games. The only real wild card was Lepolio, who seemed to be hiding exactly what he was capable of doing. That made him my one-and-only concern amongst the other careers. I had no clue what he was truly capable of. Until proven otherwise in the arena, he was by far the tribute I was most concerned about, and if any career had to die early somehow, I hoped it would be him.

After a few moments of analysis of my fellow careers, I noticed in my peripheral vision the tributes from District Ten, Eleven, and Twelve enter the room. A few seconds after they arrived, a woman wearing a white lab coat entered from the brown doors in the front. I couldn't help but grin in response. _Finally. _It was time to stop waiting. It was time for this session to begin!

"Good morning everyone. In just a few moments, the gamemakers will be ready to begin your private sessions. You will have five minutes to show your skills to the gamemakers and show them exactly what you are capable of. You can use the time however you want and use any of the weapons or skills you have may learned in the past three days. Do your best, because your training score will be based solely on how your private session goes. It is important for you all to stand out to ensure sponsors." The woman informed us in a rather condescending tone-of-voice, as if she was lecturing us on some news we didn't already understand. "Once the gamemakers are ready, I will call you all by name to enter the room to show your talents. We will be starting with the District One female and we will move our way down from there in girl-boy order."

_I was first!_ Good. I didn't even have to wait for Ariail to go in: I could just show-off what I could do right away and get out. Right after, I would probably return to my room and go back to planning. Maybe if I wanted a break from arena preparations, I'd read one of the Capitolian history books. I had to admit, there were quite a few good, interesting reads here.

The woman walked back into through the brown doors. She was gone for maybe a minute before she returned. This time, she was holding a paper in her hands.

"Alright, the gamemakers are ready. Let's not waste their time, shall we?" She questioned as she looked at the paper. "Our first tribute will be Ms. Kendra Perone. Where are you?"

I stood up with a smirk, giving no verbal reply.

"Perfect. Right this way young lady!" She called out to me.

I rolled my eyes at the 'young lady' part, but made no comment to her. Instead, I turned my head back to Ariail and the rest of the careers. My eyes focused on my district partner as my smirk turned into a more malicious grin.

"Now Ariail, before I go, remember that you need an eight or higher or else you will be removed from the Career Pack." I told him in a very sweet tone-of-voice. "Don't want anyone holding the alliance back, do we?"

"Fuck off!" He hissed in response as he glared at me. Despite his anger, I heard Cascade and even Alaska snicker to themselves, much to the chagrin of 'the leader of the Career Pack'.

Feeling satisfied at finding another 'dig' against Ariail, I turned around and started to walk towards the Capitol woman and the brown doors.

* * *

The training hall looked no different than it had the previous days. All the weapon stations were there: each of which were still filled with a multitude of choices to use in combat. The only true difference in the room was the lack of Capitol trainers. Instead, in their place, was a large, wide desk that had a group of men and women sitting at it. They were the gamemakers. I recognized Head Gamemaker Brand and the gamemaker from the first day of training, Gamemaker Singed, sitting there amongst their co-workers. All of them were staring at me intently. They were all holding pens in their hands and had papers in front of them, most likely to take notes during each private session.

"District One female, Kendra Perone," Head Gamemaker Brand read off my information before he turned to face me, "you may begin whenever you are ready."

_Showtime!_

I ran over to the axe training station to show off my speed to the gamemakers. I quickly grabbed my first one and threw it at the first training dummy at the station almost immediately. The axe made direct contact with the dummy's head, splitting it in half before it fell to the ground in pieces.

I repeated this process nine times. I grabbed different axes and threw them at various training dummies. Eight of my nine axes came into direct contact with vital areas on the dummy. Each of them would be dead if they real life tributes. The ninth axe hit the training dummy in the shoulder. I cursed inwardly. If that was a tribute, they would be pretty wounded, but not dead. There was a chance they could still fight, meaning there was a chance they could still kill me. During the actual arena, I had to make sure my axe throws were ten for ten: that there was no chance I didn't kill my targets in one hit.

However, I was in the middle of the private session, and nine out of ten fatal axe throws should be impressive to the standards of the gamemakers. That had to have been a good opening impression.

"How much time do I have left?" I questioned them as I grabbed a hatchet from the rack of axes.

"You still have three minutes, twenty-seven seconds." Brand informed me.

Good. Still more time. I quickly gripped the hatchet before charging at another set of training dummies. I quickly started to strike at them, chopping off limb from limb in quick, forceful manner. I did not stop until I obliterated all of the dummies. They were all nothing more than pieces on the ground by the time I finished. I took one second to look at the work of my devastation and grinned. I was quite confident that I came across as a capable killer to the gamemakers now.

After that, I hurried over to the fire-making station and made a fire as quickly as I could. No matter what the other careers thought, basic survival skills were important and the gamemakers would factor it into their scoring. What good is a trained killer if they were simply going to die alone to the arena itself?

Once I finished my fire, I rushed over to the gamemakers' desk and started to recite all of the information I had on edible plants and poisonous plants. I noticed one of the gamemakers writing down everything I said word-for-word. He was most likely going to fact-check everything I said to make sure I wasn't bullshitting them.

A few seconds passed by before the Head Gamemaker stood up. He held out his hand, signaling me to stop.

"That is more than enough. Well done Kendra." He told me. "You are dismissed."

I nodded in response as I started to walk away towards the exit. Before I left, though, I made sure to take a look at the faces of the gamemakers. I noticed a lot of them writing notes down on their papers. Each of them had a very pleased, content look on their face. I could tell that my performance satisfied them. They all knew that I was definitely career material and worthy of a score to reflect that. I felt confident in my performance. That was only a taste of what was to come into the arena.

While there was a part of me concerned about Zelena and her safety, I knew that she would be fine. I was trained for the Games and that I was going to win the Games this year. I wasn't going to let myself get worried about her hypothetical death. She wasn't going to die and I was going to come back a victor after experiencing the adventure of my life.

I could hardly wait to enter the arena.

* * *

**Ethan Neurus's POV – District 3 Male**

"Mr. Ariail Bardineux, it's your turn." The Capitol attendant read off the second name. "Come this way!"

The District One boy, Ariail, stood up from his seat amongst his fellow careers. My eyes followed him. He marched over to the brown doors confidently. He already knew that he was going to acquire a high training score. We all knew. He had nothing to be concerned about. In contrast, I had a multitude of reasons to be worried.

"Ethan you're shaking." Stephanie noted with a frown on her face. "Are you okay?"

I turned my head away from Ariail and focused on the two tributes in the seats next to me: Stephanie and Icarus. I was very gracious that they permitted me to sit next to them and even more gracious to have them as my allies. It was a relief that I wouldn't have to face the gamemakers and the arena alone: I had the backing of my allies.

"I'm fine Stephanie." I dismissed her concern. "I'm simply anxious right now. This waiting period is torturous."

"Believe me, I understand completely." Stephanie sighed in agreement. She took off her glasses and started to wipe them off with a handkerchief in her pocket. Either they were dirty to a loose degree that I had not noticed or it was some form of a nervous tic of hers. "I've been freaking out about today all last night. All I hope is that I learned enough from the survival stations and my own independent studies."

"I am hoping too." I mumbled in response. "We need a high training score for our suits anyway."

Stephanie and I finished the blueprints of the armor suits yesterday and I was very pleased with the end results. We composed a design that I feel will be quite possible to create once we are in the arena. Resources will not be much of a difficult problem for the production of our armored suits. What will be difficult, however, will be receiving the tools needed to produce the suits.

We're going to need interested sponsors to supply us with the proper equipment to construct the suits from the resources. The easiest way to get these 'interested sponsors' was to get high training scores. It was essential that we were both able to accomplish this goal.

"Don't stress yourselves out about today too much. It's not the end of the world if you don't get a high score." Icarus commented to both of us.

"Victoire McBlock, come on up! You're next." The Capitol attendant read the next name.

I barely paid attention to the girl from District Two as she started to walk to the training hall doors. Instead, I remained focused on Icarus. I looked at him in surprise.

"Are you not concerned at all about today?" I questioned.

"No." He answered bluntly with a shrug.

I blinked in response before I finally was able to respond. "… I know that it was a joke and rumor amongst the other tributes, but now I really am starting to wonder about your humanity. You act in a manner that resembles a robot."

Both Stephanie and Icarus chuckled in response. He had to be playing up this 'emotionless' role due to the rumors. I think he took some enjoyment out of hearing the 'robot' rumor.

"I'm human Ethan. I'm completely flesh and blood, albeit slightly burned flesh." Icarus replied. "I just don't think it's in our best interest to freak out about things like high 'training scores'. Try and get a high score, yeah, but it's not the end of the world if you don't get one. Plenty of victors have won with abysmal scores. They're a prediction of your success and that's it: they're not a guarantee of how the Games will go."

Icarus seemed to have wisdom and was able to look at the Games from a very realistic point-of-view that most people couldn't. It was something I genuinely respected about him. I assumed his mindset came from his volunteer status. He was probably able to see the Games in a different way from myself, Stephanie, and the other reaped tributes, who felt doomed by the Games and were eagerly looking for a way to escape from the arena. I really wish I could see things through his perspective. It would probably make me feel more confident about this whole experience.

Stephanie nodded in acceptance. "You have a point, yeah."

"So I take it you are okay with receiving a bad score then?" I questioned him.

He shook his head in response. "I'm aiming to get a pretty high score, but it's not the end of the world if I don't. I'm not going to moan about it if I don't. That's just going to get me killed."

It was true. As cheesy as it sounded, attitude did impact things. I was going to have to work on my attitude and confidence if I wanted to stand a chance later in the arena.

"Lepolio Huang, please come up. The gamemakers are waiting for you." The Capitol attendant read the fourth name.

The three of us said nothing for a few minutes. I watched the tall District Two boy walk up without any visible emotion. Like Icarus and the other careers before him, he wasn't concerned about the private sessions or what his score would be. It was the necessary mentality. But here I was, still feeling anxious and was trying to stop myself from shaking. So why I could not calm myself down?

The next five minutes passed and the Capitol attendant read off the next name. "It's now your turn, Kaylee Harper. Come on up!"

I noticed Kaylee stand up from her seat next to the two tributes from District Twelve. She cracked her knuckles instinctively as she walked through the brown doors to the training hall. She, like the previous four tributes, looked confident. It was something about her I suppose. From our brief conversations, Kaylee never struck me as the type of person to be intimidated by something easily.

"What's your district partner going to do?" Stephanie asked me.

"I don't have the faintest idea." I replied with a sigh. "Most likely something with knives. I've spotted her at the station a multitude of times during the past few days."

"Is she any good?" She continued to question.

"I'm not completely certain, but she's most certainly superior to me. I'm rather atrocious with them." I commented in self-deprecation. "What are you all planning to do?"

Stephanie opened her mouth to respond, but she was cut off by Icarus.

"They're private sessions. No need to be sharing too much information." He stated sharply.

_As expected_. While he did warm up to me personally and we could have a decent conversation, Icarus did not trust me. I still had no clue why. Was there something suspicious about me? I really thought I was behaving normally around them and was showing them that I was with them. I had no desire to betray him or Stephanie! I was willing to work with them the entire way. Although I suppose I was going to have to betray them at some point later in the arena, I guess. Only one tribute could be crowned victor after all. Still, that day would be coming much later. There was no reason to be suspicious of me now!

A few more minutes of silence passed before the Capitol attendant read the next name: my name! "Ethan Neurus, it's your turn."

I stood up from seat slightly hesitantly. I took a deep breath before mentally preparing myself. I was ready for this. I had to be like Kaylee and Icarus. I had to be like the Careers. I had to be confident.

"Good luck Ethan!" Stephanie told me with a smile.

"I wish you the best of luck as well." I told her, returning her smile with a nervous one of my own.

Icarus and I shared a brief look of acknowledgment before I finally sighed and walked towards the brown doors and the gamemakers.

* * *

"Ethan Neurus, your time starts now. Begin when ready." Head Gamemaker Brand informed me.

I gulped in response as I struggled to remember my manta. _Be confident Ethan!_

"Thank you very much Head Gamemaker. Now, if I could have a moment of everyone's time please." I requested.

If it was possible, the eyes of the gamemakers focused even more intently on me. I did my best to ignore it, lest I grow more and more anxious. Instead of looking at them, I pulled out a sheet of paper from my pockets: a copy of the blueprints for the armor suits Stephanie and I planned on making. I took a deep breath before speaking.

"If any of you are aware of my personal background, I am a robotics developer in one of the most prestigious factories in District Three. Machinery designs simply come naturally to me. I'm rather familiar with how to build robots and other forms of mechanics. I decided one of the best ways to increase the likelihood of my survival in the Games was designing something to keep me alive. With that in mind, I designed a suit of armor that I would be able to create during the Hunger Games." I informed them as I raised the paper. "In my hands, I hold the blueprints for my suit of armor. It has listed the necessary resources as well as the uses for the suit."

I approached the gamemaker table and held out the blueprints to the gamemaker on the far left of the table: a red-haired woman with a tanned skin complexion wearing some floral pattern dress. "I'd like you all to look at the blueprints, keeping in mind that a high score would guarantee its production and would ensure me the highest chance of returning home to my parents."

The red-haired gamemaker hesitantly took the paper and studied it intently. She quickly looked over it and passed it on. One-by-one, the gamemakers studied my designs. I noticed each of them looked impressed with the work. A proud smile developed on my face _It was working!_

Finally, the paper reached the gamemaker on the far right end of the table: Gamemaker Singed from the first day of training. After he finished it, he handed it back to me.

"I must say, the suit seems rather original. I'd be interested in seeing it in action." He commented neutrally. Then, a frown developed on his face. "Is that all you had to show us though? Did you not learn anything from the actual training stations here?"

The smile on my face quickly disappeared. _Were… they not pleased with my designs?_

I rushed over to the knife training station and displayed in, admittedly, bad ability at throwing them. Once I finished there, I walked over to the fire-making station and showed them a fire. The second I finished the fire, I noticed the Head Gamemaker stand up.

"Time is up. That'll be all, Ethan." He told me sharply.

I nodded in response. Before I turned away to leave the room, I studied the expressions on each of the gamemakers. All of them were writing down on their papers intently. What I did notice, though, was that the impressed look on their faces was no longer visible. Instead, they seemed a combination of disappointed and annoyed.

A frown developed on my face. _Did I really look that bad to them?_

Dejectedly, I slowly walked out of the room. In the back of my head, I knew I handled the private session poorly. I needed to impress them for the tools to build my suit of armor and now I failed. Based on the looks on their faces, I did not earn the high score I needed. I was most likely going to earn the low score that I most likely deserved. As my mother would put it, I failed like I usually did. I was nothing more than a failure.

All I could hope for was that Stephanie and Icarus would do better than I did… We haven't even gotten into the arena and I was already holding the alliance back. _Just great…_

* * *

**Winnie Goldstein's POV – District 7 Female **

"Alaska Dayte, please come forward. The gamemakers are waiting." The Capitol attendant stated.

The girl from District Four stood up and walked towards the brown doors to enter the training hall. She left the boy from District Four alone, who looked awkward sitting where five other careers were. Luckily for him, he wasn't going to be alone for too long: he was the next tribute on the list to be called after all. I was alone the entire time I've been in the Capitol so far, I was going to be alone the entire time of the waiting period, and I would remain alone for the remaining time during the Hunger Games.

Not like I minded it too much. The only two people I really associated with were Marv and Sherri and even with them, I was still very quiet and kept to myself. And here, most of the other tributes with me were older kids. I was the youngest here, with only the boy from Three and the two tributes from District Eight being close in age. Everyone else was fifteen or older and I had no desire to speak to them at all.

Perhaps I was being a little too judgmental. The two tributes from District Nine did try to talk to me earlier during the training days and they seemed like they were probably nice enough people. However, I simply couldn't talk to them. Maybe it was just me being ageist, but I had too many bad experiences with those older than me. They were rather scary at times and they always took advantage of me and Marv. They never cared: they would simply stab us in the back at some point. As a result of these experiences, I couldn't get over my distrust for older kids. They were all the same to me: just like my older brother, his friends, and Raegae.

"Cascade Bolt, your turn." The Capitol attendant called out the name of the last career.

Instead of Cascade, my eyes focused on Raegae. The boy was sitting next to the girl from District Ten, talking to her. Just from looking at the two, I knew he was being very obnoxious and she was sick and tired of him.

Raegae was, simply, a horrible person. He reminded me of my older brother, Daren. He was an older boy oblivious to the feelings of others who only cared about sex. Raegae talked about previous sexual encounters all the time and he was constantly trying to hook up with our escort, Autumn. He started almost the second he talked to her on the train. It was disgusting and improper! What kind of person was able to go up to someone that they had just met and ask them, word-for-word, 'Want to fuck?' He was a chauvinistic pig!

Somehow, Raegae seemed like a worse version of Daren. There were more things I disliked about him than being an older nymphomaniac boy who didn't care for others. The first time I met Raegae involved him sending bees after a girl littler and younger than him and my opinion has only grown worse with each passing day. He had been rude, he swore every second, and he had no filter whatsoever.

I was one to acknowledge my own faults when they were apparent to me and I definitely was aware that I had ageism. Once I became older, if I had the luxury of living after the Hunger Games, I was pretty sure I'd grow out of it. However, one thing I knew wouldn't change was my dislike for boys like Raegae. I was not going to miss him and I was excited for the actual Hunger Games to start just so I could get away from him.

A few seconds later, I took a deep breath and turned my head away. I got myself really worked up thinking about him!

"Stephanie Volk, come on up. Don't keep the gamemakers waiting too long!" The Capitol attendant spoke up.

The blonde haired girl from District Five took a deep breath. She adjusted her glasses as she walked forward towards the brown doors. After her, it would be her district partner's turn. Then it would be the two from District Six. Then it would be me!

_Deep breaths Winnie!_

I had an idea on exactly what I wanted to present to the gamemakers. All I could hope was that they would still be interested when it was my turn. My turn would be after all of the careers, the District Five boy that volunteered, and the two tributes from District Six that everybody seemed interested in. I was the first one to occur in what they would probably see as an 'uninteresting' set of tributes. That's the reputation most outer district tributes had. It certainly didn't help that I was twelve. They were going to perceive me as fragile and weak. There's no way they think I stand a chance to win.

_Little do they know…_

I would like to think I stood a much better chance than I did when I got reaped. I ate a ton of different foods on the train and made sure I picked up on a few pounds. I no longer looked malnourished and pathetically skinny. I then picked up on quite a few different tricks and skills during the training days. I didn't have enough time to perfect everything I wanted to learn, but I did learn a lot. The twelve year old tributes were usually seen as bloodbath fodder, but I was ready to show them. I was going to come back home to Marv!

"Icarus Bolt! Your turn!" The Capitol attendant read off another name.

I didn't turn my head to look at the lanky boy from District Five. Instead, I was focused on my own personal thoughts on Marv. This was the first time the two of us have ever been separated. There was not a single life in our twelve years of life where we were away. Now, it's been weeks since I've seen him and been with him. I missed him a ton. I missed spending time with him in the district doing errands together. I missed our walks through the forests of District Seven. I missed having meals with him whenever we could afford it.

My eyes started to become wet, which made me shake my head to the side. I was not going to cry here: not when it could make me appear weaker. But… God, I just missed my brother so much! I had to get home to see him. I had to get home to keep him alive!

On the train, I originally decided I was going to screw around with the Hunger Games. I was going to embrace my status as a possible walking corpse, enjoy my last few days of life, and then die in a rebellious manner in the arena somehow, hopefully in a way that would encourage someone to revolt. After hearing about the Quarter Quell twist though, I knew I couldn't die. A rebellion could wait a few more years. Right now, my one goal was to get back home to my brother.

It was a common stereotype that the younger tributes couldn't kill. We were just too weak and innocent: it was US who were going to get killed. That was one I was hoping to amend. I was more than willing to kill: I was ready for it. I was going to do anything to get back to my twin brother!

My thoughts were quickly interrupted as the lights in the waiting room began to flicker. It was only for a few seconds, but it was noticeable. What could have caused that?

Seconds after the light went out, the Capitol attendant read off the next name: "Could Alexandra Varas please come forward?"

The District Six girl walked forward confidently, her hands in the pockets of her pants. I was now the next female tribute. I closed my eyes in thought.

_Deep breaths Winnie!_

"Yo Winnie! What's up?"

My eyes widened immediately as I noticed the source of the voice: Raegae. My district partner was now occupying the seat next to mine with that same, sleazy grin on his face.

"Weren't you talking to the girl from District Ten? What are you doing here?" I asked aggressively. Normally, I tried to be polite in conversation, but I couldn't help myself with Raegae. He invoked a fury in me that I just couldn't quite comprehend. It had to be due to the similarities with Daren.

"Ugh, let's not talk about Maddison. Was just trying to be polite and have a civilized conversation with someone, but _nooooooo,_ that just can't happen with anyone, can it?" Raegae groaned in annoyance. "Hate that bitch."

I scoffed at his wording. He hardly knew her! What person called someone they didn't know a bitch?

"What makes you think you'll get a civilized conversation out of me?" I asked him, rolling my eyes slightly.

"Well, you're my district partner. Just because we aren't allies doesn't mean you dislike me. All district partners have to have some good relationship." Raegae noted with a chuckle.

"No, it doesn't. I don't like you Raegae." I answered bluntly.

"Ah, quit fucking with me. I know deep, deep down, you and I are the best of pals!" He informed me.

"Booker Comston, it's now your turn." The Capitol attendant read the next name.

I couldn't even look at the District Six boy as he walked off. All I could do was glare at Raegae.

"Don't think you know me or what I think Raegae. You don't. You don't know anything. I don't like you and I never will." I hissed at him.

"Keep telling yourself that kid." He shook his head. "You nervous at all? You're next, y'know?"

"I know." I rolled my eyes. "No, I'm not nervous."

"Huh? Really?" Raegae gave me a confused look. "Weird. My little brother's your age and I'm pretty sure he'd be pissing himself if he was here instead of me."

I shook my head in frustration, saying nothing. I really did not want our conversation to continue. Raegae simply infuriated me.

The next five minutes felt like torture as I did my best to ignore Raegae's chatter. All I focused on was the training hall doors, hoping that the boy from District Six would hurry up and finish his damn private session.

Finally, my prayers were answered as the Capitol attendant finally spoke up again: "Will Winnie Goldstein please come forward? It's your turn."

I didn't waste a second. I jumped out of my seat and ran forward towards the door. I didn't give Raegae any time to react or any time to make a comment. Finally, I was away from him for a little bit…

Now I could focus on the actual Hunger Games for a little bit.

* * *

"Winnie Goldstein, your time starts now." The Head Gamemaker told me sharply. "Begin when you wish."

I nodded in response. Immediately, I headed in the direction of the knife training station. I made sure to run the way there. I knew I was quick and I wanted the gamemakers to be aware of it. Anything to raise my training score!

After a quick, thirty second display with throwing knives where I managed to hit roughly over half of my targets, I ran over to the survival areas. I made a fire as fast as I could using all of the supplies there. I finished it rather quickly and realized I had plenty more time to show off more of my talents.

The thought to show off more survival knowledge crossed my mind, but then another idea entered my head: why not I show the gamemakers what I was experimenting on during my last day of training?

I ran, once again to show my speed, over to the survival station on poison creation. Different vials were on display, showcasing multiple poisons unknown to most people. After researching, though, I knew exactly what they were. I grabbed a handful of vials, probably about five or six, and brought them over to the gamemaker table and placed the vials of poisons on the desk. Once I was there, I began reciting the different types of poisons found in each vial. I also then explained how I would create them in the arena with what types of plants and natural chemicals.

I was about to explain the fifth poison when the Head Gamemaker stood up. "That's all the time. Thank you for the display Winnie. You may leave now. Before you go, though, make sure to return the poisons back to the stand."

"Yes sir." I replied politely as I grabbed the poisons and went back to the poison stand.

A wave of relief went through my body now that my performance was done. Overall, I was pretty proud of myself. The gamemakers had to see that I was tougher than I appeared. I was especially proud about my knowledge of poisons. Everything about poisons seemed to click in my head. It was very easy for me to pick up. I knew I would be able to produce a few of the different types of poison once I was in the arena. All I needed to do was find the natural ingredients and I was set. It was just another weapon, in addition to knives.

These past few days, I have been working my butt off. Maybe it looked like I stood no chance to others, but I knew I stood _a_ shot. The other, older tributes better not underestimate me. I was going to be the winner and I would make sure Marv was going to stay alive. No older kid was going to be able tell me otherwise.

* * *

**Logan Faber's POV – District 10 Male**

"Raegae Oak, come forward. Don't waste the time of the gamemakers!"

"Raven Bell, it's now your turn."

"Xander Lugar, please come forward."

"Demetriana Walser, the gamemakers are waiting for you."

"Jason Icarus, will you please come forward?

The names called out by the Capitol woman started to blend together after the District Four tributes. Once the careers were called, only the boy from District Six was interesting to me, and he was interesting for reasons _other_ than being a potential threat. I was going to enjoy slaughtering him and that bitch from District Eleven with him.

One-by-one, all of my future prey left the room to show off some useless tricks they picked up during the training period. In some way, it was actually cute to a loose degree. They all thought they stood a chance.

Over-confidence was a vice that I was well aware I possessed, but I couldn't help but look at the rest of the tributes and feel confident. I did actually spend some time studying the other twenty-three tributes and, to my disappointment, most of them were weak. None of them stood out much with the exception of the careers: and even then, only the boy from District Two seemed like he would be a true challenge to me. He was going to be a very good fight. I couldn't wait to square off against him and hear his screams right before I killed him. Other than him, though, no one seemed to be overly strong. They were all weak for a variety of reasons. Either they lacked capabilities with a weapon or they lacked the heart willing to kill. Putting these two categories together, only the careers, the girl from District Three, the two tributes from District Six, and Maddison appeared as slightly threatening. Only ten tributes would actually be interesting, slightly challenging kills to me. The rest of the tributes were nothing more than useless filler and they would all die early.

Not that I particularly minded 'weak' prey. I often enjoyed hunting on the weak. People who were old and/or sick were two of my personal favorite types of victims during my killings in District Ten. When I made my first kill on an elderly human, a woman of around seventy years old who worked at one of the local district schools, I had never felt more powerful in my life. It was straight-up dominance and it was absolutely addicting. I had felt like an angel of death when I sliced off her head!

_Angel of death_. I couldn't help but smile at the thought. Religion was absolute bullshit to me: it was the work of the weak who fantasized about some meaningless afterlife due to their own personal fears of dying. There was no heaven and there was no hell: death was only thing there at the end of life. It was eternal and it was all-powerful: it was a repressive figure. If there was a god, it would be death itself, and I was going to be its own personal angel.

_Ugh, I'm sick of waiting_. These past few days in the Capitol have been as agonizingly slow as I imagined they would be. I was sick of all this bullshit protocol. The Capitol citizens just wanted to watch a bloodbath, so why couldn't they hurry up already and throw us into the arena?

I was getting really impatient. Too impatient. I nearly killed the girl from District Eleven two days in a rushed-frenzy. For the first time in my life, I acted out of instinct alone and tried to get a kill without any consideration of my surrounding or environment. That was actually scary to me. Usually, I was much more cautious with that. The last thing I wanted was to do was get executed myself! I had too many killing sprees, too many ideas, planned to throw my life away so soon. Yet, I was willing to risk my life and everything that I had been working for just one kill on some cowardly girl from District Eleven.

The wait for the Hunger Games to start was driving me insane. I needed to kill someone. I need one soon and I needed one badly!

"Maddison Holland, please come forward. The gamemakers are ready." The Capitol attendant spoke.

My eyes focused on Maddison as she walked forward towards the brown doors. She cracked her knuckles as she entered the door, ready to show what she learned to the gamemakers.

Hopefully, she learned more than I thought she had. I did want to have some challenging kills and I felt that Maddison could potentially be one. The entire point of entering the Hunger Games was to kill people who were capable. I wanted Maddison to be amongst that list. She appeared strong when I met her and with some training, she could have maybe become stronger. If she became as strong as I hoped she would, she would be one of my absolute favorite kills.

Regardless of how strong she is or not, I was ready to make her death as long and painful as I could. She was going to be the way I proved a point to everyone watching. Maddison was going to be fighting with the exclusive backing of our mentor, Julian. She would be receiving all the sponsorships and outside help. I was going in by myself with only whatever I got out of the cornucopia. I was ready to show Julian and everyone watching how someone truly strong should fight in the Hunger Games. I didn't need any outside help: I was going to win all by myself and I would relish in the death of my enemies.

A few more minutes passed by before the Capitol attendant finally spoke again. "Logan Faber, please come forward." She read off my name.

_With pleasure. _

I didn't waste any time: I stood up from my seat and walked excitedly into the training hall. Sitting in the waiting room with nothing to do but think about my future prey got me really worked up. I needed to release a lot of the aggression I built up.

I needed to kill something…

* * *

"Logan Faber, you may begin." The Head Gamemaker told me.

"Before we begin, I need to ask a question." I spoke up to them. "Do any of you have an avox that I may borrow for my training session? Preferably a capable one who could actually fight me. I want to spar."

The eyebrows of all the gamemakers widened in confusion. A few seconds passed before the Head Gamemaker nodded.

"We'll grant you your request. Zyra, do you not have an avox nearby that is rather muscular? Fetch him for us." The Head Gamemaker.

A gamemaker at the far left end with red-hair nodded. I presumed she was 'Zyra', but I really didn't care about her name. She then pressed a button on her table before speaking: "I just summoned him. My avox will be here shortly. In the meantime, show us what you can do."

I nodded in understanding. It was now a matter of killing time while I waited for him to arrive.

I rushed over to the scythe training station and grabbed the first scythe I could. Gripping it tightly, I turned to face the first training dummy I saw. Immediately, I swung at it, decapitating the head. Before the head hit the ground, though, I swung my scythe gain. The head was cut into half before it hit the ground in two pieces.

I spent the first few minutes of presentation slaughtering different training dummies. I made sure to show off different forms of my technique. I wanted the gamemakers to be aware of the many ways I could kill someone with a scythe. The use of the scythe was an art-form that I had mastered and I was eager to show off the full extent of my art.

It was a shame that the training dummies were not filled with blood or organs. The lack of leaking bodily fluids made my art-form more difficult for the common person to appreciate.

After a while, the doors to the room opened. There, walking through the door, was an avox. This was the first time I truly saw an avox in person, as our idiotic Capitol escort Jewel was morally against the idea of avoxs, so I made an effort to study him and memorize what he was like.

He was a boy who looked around twenty-two. He had very pale skin and was wearing all blue. There was a dejected look in his eyes and he was grinding his teeth, clearly wanting to say something despite lacking the capabilities. Just looking at him, I knew his type. He was the kind of guy with no filter who spoke his mind. He clearly said something the Capitol took offense to and he was quickly reduced to nothing more than a weak, voiceless avox. That was how humans worked. They anticipated the first threats and reacted before any harm was coming their way, destroying the life of someone who was potentially no threat.

After everything the Capitol did to them, avoxs were no humans. They were bitter husks, waiting for their death. I actually pitied him. Looking at him in front of me, I knew that I needed to give him what he desired.

Besides, I had made the request for his presence and my bloodlust was at an all-time high. I needed something to die right now!

I rushed to the boy at a rapid speed, before the gamemakers could say a single word. I quickly punched the avox in the face with my left hand, sending him backwards. He crashed into the door he entered from hard before falling to the ground on its back.

"Gamemakers, how much time do I have?" I asked.

"Y-You have a minute." The red-haired gamemaker who 'owned' the avox spoke up.

The woman continued to speak, but I didn't listen. I had only one minute. I had to make every second count.

I quickly rushed over to the avox's body and pinned him to the ground with my foot. He struggled to get up, but he couldn't. He was, indeed, muscular and I felt his attempt, but it was not enough to stop me. After a few seconds of letting him try, I quickly brought the blade of my scythe into his arm. I inched it forward into his skin slowly, watching the blood rush out of the wound. Eventually, after exerting enough force, my scythe sliced through the avox's entire arm: separating it from his body.

The avox stopped his struggling to get up at that point. He was now simply writhing in pain. I proceeded to kick him over so he could lay on his stomach. He was still alive and his mouth was wide open. He was trying so hard to scream in pain, but he couldn't. The Capitol didn't want him to talk, so he wasn't allowed to scream either.

I proceeded to replicated the previous process on his left leg. I placed the blade of my scythe against his leg and slowly inched it forward with more force until the entire leg was cut off. The avox continued to wince and squirm from the pain as he continued to try and scream. Tears started to flow from his eyes.

Normally, if this were a normal execution with a normal human, I would continue to stall my kill. Watching the life fade from their eyes was something I relished in! There was still a few seconds left in my gamemaker session and I could easily savor the kill for longer. However, I simply couldn't.

Avoxs were not human: not any longer at least. Instead, they were an example of how fucked up the human species was. They would go to the lengths of removing someone's ability to speak and forcing them into a life of servitude for whatever reason they justified. Because the avox was a criminal? Because he fled from his district? Because he was a potential threat? No matter the excuse, the reasoning was bullshit.

I quickly brought my scythe to his neck and cut it off immediately. At that point, his death was instantaneous. His body now remained in four severed parts, all lying in pools of blood.

For the first time in my career, I felt guilt about prolonging a kill. The avox definitely deserved the death that he so rightfully wanted, but I regretted torturing him. He wasn't a human: he was made from the product of human sin.

"Logan… you may leave now. Your session is over." The Head Gamemaker ordered.

I gave no verbal reply: I simply laid my scythe down next to the body parts of the deceased avox. I then rushed out of the room, not even bothering to look towards the gamemakers.

I was able to release my inner desire to kill for a few seconds, but this desire was now intensified even further. After seeing one with my own eyes and killing one, the very concept of an avox and their creation pissed me off. It invigorating my hatred for humanity even further.

I was glad I was entering the Hunger Games. Once I was finished slaughtering the twenty-three tributes, I would come back into society and begin my onslaught: both back in District Ten and in the Capitol. My mission wouldn't stop until every human was exterminated. The species needed to be eradicated and nothing was going to stop me from completing my mission.

* * *

**Damien Brand's POV – Head Gamemaker **

"Time is up. You may leave now Yaro." I informed the boy from District Twelve.

Yaro nodded in understanding. He bowed before he returned the knives to their stand. He then left the room.

The private sessions were done. All that was left to do was to compile the results and determine the training scores. Once we finished, we were done for the day and we could just go back home.

For me, personally, this was my least favorite part of the Hunger Games. The private sessions meant nothing in the actual arena. High-scoring tributes were prone to disappoint in the arena while low-scoring tributes were known for surprising the audience and lasting much longer than anyone anticipated. This was entirely a waste of time. Nevertheless, it was tradition to have these little private sessions and I considered myself conservative by nature. I wasn't going to be the one to break tradition of one hundred fifty years, even if I personally disliked it.

A few minutes passed as the other gamemakers finished compiling their thoughts on the District Twelve boy. Once they finished, I quickly cleared my throat.

"Alright, let's get this over with. We all don't want to be here any longer than we have to, so let's make this quick and start discussing the tributes." I informed them sharply.

Everyone nodded in agreement. Just like me, no one wanted to be here. After watching twenty-four tributes do performances for the past two hours and nothing else, we just wanted to simply leave. I had actually made plans to have lunch with my daughter, her husband, and her son. That was a much more valuable use of my time than some useless number score out of twelve.

"Let's begin with the District One girl, Kendra Perone." I started as I looked back at my notes. "Very impressive skills with the axe, both at range and in melee. She hit nearly all of her targets. She also displayed very good understanding of survival knowledge."

"I fact-checked the information on edible plants. It all matched up. She knew her stuff." One of the younger gamemakers, a man with dyed green hair named Luis Zac, commented.

"She stood out very well. A score of nine suits her." Singed stated sharply.

We all nodded in agreement. I quickly wrote the number 'nine' next to her name.

"Any disagreements on the same score for her district partner, Ariail Bardineux?" I questioned.

"None." Zyra commented with a shrug. "Superb use of the sword and a very agile fighter. He definitely deserves that score."

No one else spoke against this decision. A smirk crossed my lips as I wrote down a 'nine' next to his name as well. I loved it when there was no disagreement about the ranks. It made this whole process go by much faster.

"Victoire McBlock, the District Two girl, outperformed both of them though. She showed a much higher understanding of more weapons. Her skills with the crossblade boomerang were impressive." Singed noted with a shrug. "She's easily the best long-range fighter here and she seems capable even in melee-range. She earned a ten."

There were no disagreements here again. I quickly wrote a ten by her name.

"Now for the District Two male, Lepolio Huang." I repeated his name.

"How many of you would object to giving him an eleven?" Singed questioned.

The gamemakers were silent in response. It was rare to give out scores higher than tens. Only a handful were handed out each five years. We wanted a high score like that to actually mean something. Nevertheless, no one spoke up in disagreement.

"I'm fine with that." I finally answered for everyone, writing down the number eleven next to Lepolio's name. "He showed a mastery of multiple weapons and survival skills. In addition, he has some of the best swordsmanship I have ever seen in tributes during my entire career, if not the best. He definitely deserved his score."

"Now on to one of the boring districts." Zac commented with a laugh.

Most of the gamemakers laughed in agreement. It was no secret that District Three was not a fan-favorite amongst the Capitol. Nevertheless, I couldn't help but scoff.

"Kaylee Harper, the girl from District Three, should get a seven." I stated sharply.

The laughter stopped. They all stared at me, processing my suggestion.

"I suppose." Zac commented with a shrug. "She was good with knives. But I do not feel her district partner deserves an even remotely high score compared to her. I'd give him a three at best."

"A three is being generous to the boy, but I'll give it to him." I shrugged as I wrote down the scores for each District Three tribute.

"For District Four, I feel like they both deserved eights." Zyra commented as she looked at her notes. "Cascade was very skilled at spears, hand-to-hand combat, and had a surprising amount of knowledge of different poisons. Alaska, on the other hand, was very fast, skilled with knives, and was great with nets and knot-tying in general. They both excelled and will be skilled, if slightly unorthodox, members of the Career Pack."

"That's a fair assessment of those two." I nodded in agreement as I wrote down 'eights' next to their names. "Now for District Five. I say we should give the girl a five."

"That's fair." Zac nodded in agreement. "Decent knowledge of survival skills and about average with a sword. Average score for an average tribute."

"Her district partner, on the other hand…" Singed started to speak.

We all remembered the display the boy, Icarus Bolt, gave us. After showing some brief knowledge of survival skills, he displayed his knowledge of electricity by using some of the wires in the survival station. In the process, he somehow found a way to shut off the lights in the training hall and the waiting room. He then used that acquired electricity to blast a training station, completely electrocuting it and turning it into nothing more than burnt ash.

"I presume that must have been what the gamemakers years ago felt when Beetee Latier was in his private session." Singed continued to speak. His voice made no attempts to hide how impressed he was – a rare feat, considering I have known him for years. He wasn't easily impressed with the words of 'intellectual' tributes like Icarus. "He earned himself a ten with that performance."

"Ten it is." I recorded the scores for both District Five tributes. "Now for District Six?"

"Eight for both of them. Alexandra Varas is the fastest tribute here, to put it bluntly, and she is very skilled with a bow. She's second in long-range only to Victoire. In contrast, Booker Comston has the best hand-to-hand fighting skills here and displayed a good knowledge on all different types of weapons." Zyra mentioned her opinions.

No one disagreed with her statement, so I wrote down their scores. I remembered that there was some animosity between both of the District Six tributes: I wondered how they would react to getting the same score?

"The girl from District Seven, Winnie, was actually impressive for her age." Zac noted. "Would a score of six be too much?"

"No disagreements here. An average, slightly-above score for her." I agreed. "I also feel her district partner, Raegae Oak, deserves the same score."

"No objections here. He clearly has his strengths, but overall, I felt he was solidly average. Nothing stood out about in particular other than his hand-to-hand combat and his skills with staffs." Zac answered.

I quickly wrote the scores down for the District Seven tributes. I then quickly glared at the other, quiet gamemakers. "Only Gamemakers Zyra, Singed, Zac and myself are actually participating in this discussion. I realize that we all do not want to be here, but do none of you actually have an opinion?"

Most of my fellow, quiet co-workers did not respond. They simply looked downward in embarrassment after being called out. One, though, looked at me. It was the newest, youngest members to the team: a quiet, brown-haired boy of twenty years named Azir Shurima.

"The girl from District Eight, Raven Bell, earned herself a five while her partner, Xander Lugar, earned himself a four." He told me.

"Fair assessment." I nodded in agreement. "She was knowledgeable on survival skills and adequate with a slingshot, but nothing too special. The boy was rather mediocre over all with the exception of fire-making and traps. Any objections?"

No one disagreed, so I wrote down the scores for the two. Only four more districts left.

"Demetriana Walser and Jason Icarus from District Nine both deserve a score of six in my opinion." Azir continued. "Above average in terms of survival knowledge and some basic skills overall. Nothing too special though, so a slightly above-average score."

"While I agree with that score for the girl, I feel Jason deserves a seven." Zac noted his disagreement. "He showed defensive capabilities as well and was able to move some rather heavy objects in the weight-lifting area. He outperformed his district partner just slightly."

"I'm inclined to agree with Zac." I noted as I wrote down the scores 'six' and 'seven' for Demetriana and Jason respectively. "On to District Ten."

"Eight for the District Ten girl. Maddison was most impressive in knot-tying and agility. She also seemed very skilled with a rope, which isn't a normal weapon you see in every Hunger Games." Singed noted. "I'm very interested in how she will perform in the actual arena."

"I would agree with that assessment." I nodded in agreement. "As for the boy…"

All eyes focused on Zyra. I noticed her eyes look towards the door where her avox was murdered.

"I am sorry about that, Zyra." I apologized. "When I allowed his request, I assumed he was simply going to spar it. I didn't expect for… that… to happen."

"Don't apologize. He was an avox: he can be replaced." She replied with a shrug. I suppose that was true. "Nevertheless, I knew that avox quite well. He was definitely physically strong, so for Logan to overpower him so easily said something about Logan's physical strength. Furthermore, that scene was… simply graphic."

We all nodded. I actually paled slightly back at that thought. I've seen some fucked up shit in the private sessions, but I never actually witnessed a_ fucking murder _before. I was quick to dismiss the boy from District Ten the second he was finished.

"He's definitely a killer, and he should have a score to reflect that." Zyra was the first of us to speak after a minute of silence. "An eleven is what I propose. I would say to give him a twelve if he displayed some knowledge of survival skills, but he didn't. But based on killing prowess alone, he deserved an eleven minimum."

There were no objections. After watching that bloody scene, I think we all knew he earned his high score.

"… now, on to more unmemorable tributes." Zac joked, trying to lighten the mood in the room. "Fives for both Bane Darnell and Florina Everett?"

"I think Florina earned a six, in my honest opinion." Azir commented. "In addition to a good amount of survival knowledge, she was very capable with her scythe. She seemed much more capable with her weapon than Bane did with his."

"Did anyone else think Bane was hiding something from us though?" Zyra questioned. "He seemed almost _too_ uncomfortable with his knives. Something was suspicious about him."

"I would agree that he was suspicious. He seemed very aware of what he was presenting to us: more so than most other tributes. However, we can't give him a score based on some hypothetical skills he may or may not have. We grade them on what they showed us. If he wants to hide some of his skills, then so be it. But for now, I agree with both Zac and Azir. Bane Darnell earned himself a five while Florina Everett earned herself a six." I stated sharply, writing the corresponding scores for the District Eleven tributes.

"Now, last but not least: District Twelve." Singed spoke up with a shrug. "They were both above average. Six for both of them."

No one voiced any disagreements, so I simply shrugged and wrote down a 'six' for both Emery Aspen and Yaro Hailstien.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! Here's the next chapter! :)

To summarize the last point-of-view, here are the training scores!

**Kendra Perone - 9**

**Ariail Bardineux - 9**

**Victoire McBlock - 10**

**Lepolio Huang - 11**

**Kaylee Harper - 7**

**Ethan Neurus - 3**

**Cascade Bolt - 8**

**Alaska Dayte - 8**

**Stephanie Volk - 5**

**Icarus Bolt - 10**

**Alexandra Varas - 8**

**Booker Comston - 8**

**Winnie Goldstein - 6**

**Raegae Oak - 6**

**Raven Bell - 5**

**Xander Lugar - 4**

**Demetriana "Demi" Walser - 6**

**Jason Icarus - 7**

**Maddison Holland - 8**

**Logan Faber - 11**

**Florina Everett - 6**

**Bane Darnell - 5**

**Emery Aspen - 6**

**Yaro Hailstien - 6**

Those are the training scores! Agree? Disagree? Any surprises? What did you think of what you saw in Kendra's, Ethan's, Winnie's, and Logan's private sessions?

We are so close to the arena that I can hardly stand it. We only have two more chapters until the actual Hunger Games starts. As a result, I finally had to settle down on a bloodbath. After revising the list approximately twenty to thirty different times, I have a planned bloodbath list and order of death. Hopefully none of you will be disappointed with it. It's going to actual hurt to kill off some of these marvelous tributes that I received. :(

On the topic of bloodbaths, I'm just curious what you all think. Who do you think is going to die? I'm just really curious about everything. We're getting closer and closer and I want to know!

Anyway, I'm beginning work on the next chapter right away. I'll see you all when I finish it! :)


	13. The Interviews: Moment in the Spotlight

**Cascade Bolt's POV – District 4 Male**

Once my stylist left the preparation room after we finished getting ready for the interviews, I looked at my reflection in the mirror. I had to admit that I had my doubts about the District Four stylists and their competence after the fisherman costumes for the tribute parade. Seriously, I'm not an expert on fashion or anything, but what kind of drugs were they smoking if they thought _that_ looked appealing? We looked absolutely disgusting on the chariot and I had to salvage my image by showing off to the audience more than I was comfortable with on the chariot. Now, my doubts were cast aside. I was dressed in a rather nice black tuxedo suit with matching black dress pants and a blue tie with a golden triton running down the center of it. I looked like one of those rich guys of District Four who owned the fisheries and the factories.

I really had to admit it; I looked badass.

After a few more seconds, I left the prep room and headed towards the main living room of District Four. Both Alaska and Triton were there, chatting about something. Their conversation ended when I walked into the room, however.

"Well, there's our guy." Triton noted with a pleased look in his eyes. "I must say Cascade, you look pretty dashing."

"Thanks." I replied with a confident smile.

I then looked towards my district partner. Alaska was clearly the hottest tribute amongst all of the girls and the stylists were aware of that fact. Therefore, they made her a dress to 'show-off' this fact. She was wearing a one-piece blue dress with a wave pattern on it to make it resemble the ocean. It was short and skin-tight, not trying at all to hide her legs or her above-average sized breasts. This was probably the sexiest she's ever looked since I met her and it was obvious the horny Capitol men were going to be ecstatic to waste their money to sponsor her.

If only the stylists could do something about her personality. Not like that was possible. I did not like Alaska and no one could change that. No matter how attractive the stylists try to make her, nothing is going to hide how frickin obnoxious she was to me. I knew for a fact I wasn't going to miss her when she inevitably died when the Career Pack disbands later in the Games. She probably wouldn't miss me either. We were just two people who should have probably never met.

"Well, Alaska and I were just waiting for you here. If you're ready now, then we can send the two of you off to the waiting room for the interviews. It's probably best to get you both out there a little early." Triton noted, shaking me away from my thoughts.

Both Alaska and I nodded in response. We then proceeded to follow our district escort as he led us towards the interviews.

* * *

After an overly long period of waiting, it was time for the interviews to begin. All twenty-four tributes stood behind one-another in the waiting room by the door to the interview room, waiting for our turn in the spotlight. I stood directly behind Alaska and in front of the girl from District Five, Stephanie. None of us talked to each other as we all spent our time wondering exactly what we were going to say during our interviews.

This was probably going to be biggest challenge for me during these past few days. Getting an eight in training wasn't that difficult and perfecting my survival knowledge was actually pretty simple. Talking to a bunch of people who probably didn't give a shit about me and trying to convince them to give a shit? This was definitely going to suck big time. I preferred time alone or with a close group of friends; not talking to an audience of the entire country.

The television in the waiting room turned on, showing the image of the giant, coliseum-like interview room that the people in the districts were seeing. On stage was the interviewer: Sapphire Taric. The man walked in an obnoxiously bright blue suit and with black dress pants and his hair was highlighted in the same blue/pink/green color hybrid that it was always in.

"Gooooooood evening ladies and gentlemen of Panem! This is your host, Sapphire Taric, and welcome to the Interview Special for the Sixth Quarter Quell!" Taric exclaimed loudly to the audience. The people immediately started to shout loudly in response. "We have a special night planned for all of you: both for the fans here and for all of you watching on the television screens in your comfortable homes, so stay tuned. Now is the time where you all will get to know the tributes before they are sent off into the arena. Who are they? What are they like? What are their interests? What are their deepest, darkest secrets?" The man stopped talking as he looked into the cameras intently. He gave a very sly smirk towards it. "We'll find out everything in due time. I'll make sure of that!"

I rolled my eyes as the audience cheered. I don't care how good he is at his job, that man won't learn anything about me that I don't want to tell. Period.

Nevertheless, the interviews started. The usual order was girl-boy order from District One to District Twelve. Therefore, Kendra was the first to walk out of the waiting room and enter the interview room…

I gulped as I watched her shake hands with Taric and take her seat. Seven years ago when one of Dylan's older friends, a guy named River, volunteered for the Hunger Games, the girl from District Two brutally murdered him with an axe. His body was nothing more than chopped-up pieces of flesh and blood. Watching someone I knew die like that as an eight year-old scarred me. It was the reason I had no interest in volunteering for the Games and it was the reason why I had a slight phobia of axes and axe users in general. I did not want to have a similar fate to River…

It didn't help my nerves that Kendra appeared very capable, just like the girl from District Two that year. Kendra was dressed in a golden, two-piece dress with jeweled spikes where her shoulders were. She looked like a true warrior and killer. Of all the other careers, she was definitely the one I was most afraid to fight later in the Games. All I could hope for was that she would fuck up somehow.

Her interview was a surprise to me. Kendra, the aloof girl who seemed to speak only to put-down Ariail, was actually very friendly with Taric. She talked about her training and her excitement to enter the Hunger Games for the experience. She also spent her time joking with Taric about a few of the things he said. Kendra then started to talk about her boyfriend Matthias, who had helped her train for the Games this year. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear she was just a cheerful, pleasant girl like Victoire! However, I did know better and that this 'image' was entirely put-on.

"With the way you keep talking about Matthias, I'm surprised he isn't the person connected to you with the Quarter Quell twist." Taric noted with a light chuckle after a joke Kendra made about her boyfriend.

"He means a lot to me, but Zelena means just as much." Kendra admitted with a sigh, her face developing into a frown. "I've never been too close with my family with the exception of her. She's been there for me ever since I was adopted and I've shared many experiences with her. She's my best friend and more than a sister to me." The frown on her face then quickly turned into a confident smirk. "That's why I'm going to win. There's no way anything is going to happen to her. I'll cut down anyone with my axe who tries to stop me from getting back to her."

The bell for the interview rang at that point. Kendra and Taric hugged each other as she walked out of the room. While everyone in the audience was cheering rather loudly, I had to stifle a shiver from running down my spine. I was going to do everything I could to make sure I wasn't going to get cut down by her axe. Anything to avoid River's fate…

After Kendra left the stage, Ariail came to the stage with a similar confident look on his face. He was wearing a button-up dress shirt and pants of solid gold and silver. He looked more like a District One tribute than Kendra did. Instead of the warrior that she appeared to be, Ariail looked more like some rich snob. His interview went as I expected. He was very eager to talk about himself and his accomplishments to Taric. He wasn't interested in talking about his friends and especially not his family. He made it very clear that his interview was about nothing but him. It didn't take him to long to mention that he was going to be one leading the Career Pack.

"You're going to lead the Career Pack?" Taric questioned with a confused look in his eyes.

"Of course. I'm a natural-born leader. There was no better choice amongst the other careers." Ariail noted with a smirk on his face.

"But didn't both Victoire and Lepolio receive higher scores? Wouldn't that make them qualified leaders as well, if not more qualified?" The interview questioned.

Ariail's interview fell-apart from there as he quickly became dismissive and uncooperative. His interview ended soon after. He earned his applause but it was not as loud as the one for Kendra. He stormed off the stage and was soon replaced by Victoire, who was wearing a black top and a white skirt with a slit running down to show off her legs.

During the last training day, I got to know Victoire slightly well. Some of the things she talked about with Taric, such as the big family she came from and some of the general personality traits of her five siblings, did not surprise me. Nevertheless, it was nice to hear her interview. She was so comfortable in front of the cameras and the audience and she was very polite and respectful in her speech. When her interview, she received the loudest applause by far. I couldn't help but smile as she walked off the stage. _Good job Victoire. _She was by far the nicest tribute I met so far here and she definitely deserved the support she was going to get from the fans.

Lepolio walked up to take his seat. His generic white suit and dress pants didn't stand out too much on the stage. What did stand out was the fact that the suit was tight enough to show off the guy's muscles pretty well. His interview was probably the most generic one so far. Lepolio was quiet but cooperative. He occasionally made a comment or joke, but Taric spent most of the time talking. He knew he didn't have to say much during his interview and he knew it. His muscles and that score of 'eleven' did all of the talking for him. His interview ended and he received a similarly loud applause to Victoire.

The girl from District Three, Kaylee, was the next to walk forward. She was wearing a blue skin-tight suit that covered her body tightly. It had many flashing and bright lights on it. She looked like something straight out of a computer! It didn't look that impressive to me, but the Capitol audience seemed to eat it up. She definitely had the outfit that stood out the most so far.

"Kaylee, you look quite flashy. I must say, I'm impressed." Taric complimented her as she took her seat.

"Thanks, although I don't normally wear things like this, but the stylist insisted." Kaylee responded with a shrug. I could tell that was more of a complaint than anything else. She most likely agreed with me that it looked ridiculous.

"Well, your stylist and I have very similar taste in clothes. I'd recommend more clothes like that for you." Taric suggested.

"Again, thanks. I'll remember that after I come back as victor." She noted with a cocky smirk on her face.

The interview continued on that note. Kaylee was very confident as she talked about her chances and her planning. She stiffened whenever her personal life and her 'lover' was brought up and made sure to bring the topic back to her plans. Once her interview ended, she got a rather loud applause for a girl from her district. She definitely seemed more capable than most District Three tributes, I had to admit. I'd take note of her later in the arena. _Her partner however…_

The District Three boy, Ethan, replaced her wearing a similar blue one-piece suit designed for his body. Unlike her, though, he came across a lot more awkward and less confident. He spoke with some confusing-ass speech pattern that seemed to alienate Taric and the audience. He spent a good time trying to explain some over-complicated plan of his for the arena, but no one really understood him. He seemed to realize that and froze up instantly. By the time his interview ended, he received a very light applause that could be described as nothing more than polite. Ethan wasted no time as he bolted out of the room. It looked as if he was going to cry.

After Ethan left the stage, Alaska marched forward confidently through the door, where she was quickly greeted with loud clapping, cheering, and wolf whistles. I was now at the front of the line. It was going to be my turn to go out for my interview next.

"Alaska, I must say, you look simply amazing." Taric complimented her as she sat down in the chair.

"Well, thank you Taric. You look rather handsome yourself as well." Alaska replied with a compliment and a playful smile. "Did you do something to your hair?"

"I'm impressed you noticed! Yes, I put a special gel in it to make it shine more in the light." The interviewer admitted with a hearty chuckle.

"Well, it suits you. Good job." She told him.

Alaska's interview was the most surprising for me to watch up to this point. During every interaction with her, I had this image of her as a straight-up bitch. Here, though, she was laughing and having a good time with Taric. And I could tell that she wasn't being fake. She seemed actually like a decent person that I maybe would have liked back in District Four.

… _focus Cascade_. I shook my head, rejecting that idea. We were already on bad terms and it was best to stay that way. We were going into the Hunger Games with the intent of killing each other. I couldn't think of her in any way other than the 'bitch' I had imagined her to be. Anything to lessen the amount of people I'd feel guilty for killing. Victoire, so far, was the only tribute I think I would truly regret killing and I wanted that number to remain as small as possible!

As a result, I zoned out the rest of her interview. I caught a few trace words, such as 'Oanou', but I tried to not hear as much as I could. It didn't take too long before she stood up, received her applause, and started to walk out. Taric then called out my name, signaling it was my turn. I walked forward through the door, putting a cocky smirk on my face_. It's showtime!_

As I walked towards the chair in the interview room, I waved excitedly towards the audience. The audience cheered loudly in response. I then took my seat in my chair and shook Taric's hand.

"Cascade, how are you doing today?" He asked me in his dramatic tone-of-voice.

"Good, good. Just kinda anxious." I admitted with a light chuckle, trying to keep my nerves in check. Not a good time to get camera shy. "Tomorrow's the big day after all."

"Oh believe me, I know. We've all been looking forward to the start of the Quarter Quell, haven't we everybody?" Taric asked the audience. We were greeted with an extremely loud cheering. I blinked in surprise at just how loud the response was.

"… heh. You're all really excited. Pressure's on." I replied with a nervous chuckle. This earned a laugh from most of the audience, which helped me become more confident again. "Hope I live up to everyone's expectations, and my own expectations."

"And what are your own expectations?" Taric questioned curiously.

"To be the next Finnick Odair." I answered. The audience started cheering loudly again. I heard a few a girls profess their love for Finnick from the audience. It's been so long since his Games, both the one he won and the Third Quarter Quell, but people still loved the due. Making a connection between me and him was certainly going to earn me a couple more sponsors.

"Those are quite the high expectations indeed! Finnick was quite the fighter back when he was in the Games." Taric noted with an impressed look in his eyes.

"I can reach it. I have a few things over him after all. I'm a year older than he was when he entered the Hunger Games for the first time and I'm a little more trained than he was." I explained, making myself seem as cocky as I could. "Plus, I've already had success in fights."

"You already have success? It seems to me there's a story hidden there somewhere." The interview exclaimed excitedly.

I blinked in thought for a second, deciding if I wanted to elaborate. Eventually, I shrugged and decided to do it. Why not? It would surely make me seem more capable.

"I've gotten into many street fights and shit in District Four. It all started when I was eight and a couple of older kids jumped me when I was bringing home bread to my family. They beat me up pretty badly and stole the food I bought, so I realized I needed to get tougher so I wouldn't have to take people's shit like that again. The next time those bastards tried to take me on, I was able to take them on and give three of them broken jaws." I explained. "I still get in similar situations. People try to piss me off and fuck with me, so I knock them out. I've earned a pretty good reputation as a fighter back at home and anyone smart knows not to fuck with me."

A few people in the audience gasped at my story, both from my language and the idea that a little kid would get jumped for food. They were Capitol and rich; they would never truly understand the problems that can arise from living in the districts. A few seconds passed before they started to cheer loudly. My story definitely showed that I was a capable fighter.

"My, what a reputation to have." Taric commented with a wolf-whistle in approval. "It probably makes you very confident entering the Hunger Games."

"Of course." I answered with a nod. "I mean, most tributes each year, even the careers, have never actually been a fight before the Hunger Games where there's a good chance you could get killed. I have. I don't mean to sound too cocky, but I've actually had experience in this shit. I can definitely, and will, hold my own in a fight and win."

The audience continued to cheer loudly in response. Any of the nerves I had been feeling had finally gone away. The people were actually cheering for me! I couldn't but grin in response.

"I'm sure you will." Taric nodded in agreement.

"Don't tell my bro about that though. I never mentioned that story to him and I know he'd be pretty pissed if he knew I said nothing to him about me getting jumped as a kid. You know how protective older brothers are." I told him jokingly, which earned another laugh from the audience.

"Ah yes, your brother Dylan. He was the one who was tied to your life, right?" Taric questioned. I nodded. "How close are the two of you?"

The grin faded from my face and developed into a sadder-looking smile. "Dylan's awesome. I couldn't have asked for a better brother. He's done a lot for me, so now it's my turn to step up to the plate and do something for him. I don't give damn about anything else: I'm going to make sure I get back alive so he can stay alive."

The bell then went off, signaling the end of the interview. Taric returned my sad smile with one of his own. "And I'm sure you'll do just that. Ladies and gentlemen, Cascade Bolt!"

The Capitol audience continued to cheer for me as I stood up. I put my thoughts about Dylan to the side as I got up from my seat and did an elaborate bow, which earned more cheering and applause. I then left the room, feeling more confident than I had before. During the interview, I had tried my best to appear as capable as I could. Based on the reaction, I think I did my job and more. It was good to know that sponsorships were going to be the least of my worries in the arena, even when I separate from the Career Pack later!

_Don't worry about you or me, Dylan. Nothing's going to happen to either of us. I'm going to do everything I can to win this thing._

* * *

**Alexandra Varas's POV – District 6 Female**

I hated dresses. I never wore one and I certainly never owned one. They were usually the first things I would sell if I happened to steal one during my heists. Fancy clothing seemed to be an absolute waste of money to me. I could never understand why anyone would be willing to pay so much money for clothes when they could simply use something much cheaper and more comfortable to wear.

Despite my grievances, here I was in line for the interview wearing a bright, red, one-piece dress. It was slightly too tight for me, and I was skinny as it was! It felt so uncomfortable and foreign to me My fingers gripped the hems of the dress tightly and I had to prevent myself from ripping it off and storming back to my room to put on normal clothes. I couldn't wait to get back to the living quarters and toss this dress away.

I watched the girl from District Five, Stephanie, walk through the door to the interview room nervously as she straightened out the skirt on her white two-piece dress. Hopefully, her interview wouldn't be take too much time. I was sick of waiting.

Waiting in line was a miserable process. I've always been the type of person who hated wasting time, and there was nothing else to do other than kill precious, precious time. We were just supposed to stand still, look pretty, and wait for our turn in the spotlight. The whole interview process was a farce anyway. No one on in the Capitol cared about who we were or what we were interested in. All that mattered to them was a good story and a few interesting kills in the arena.

Luckily for me, though, I was able to provide both.

I turned my head to face Booker. The guy seemed as uncomfortable as I did in his black leather jacket, khaki pants, and his fedora. He probably shared a similar desire of mine: to not stand out. His discomfort turned into anger when he noticed me looking at him.

"Something you need to say to me?" He grumbled his question.

"No, nothing at all. I was just thinking about the interviews and what you may possibly say during yours. I'm just curious if you're going to try and shove your 'justice' ideals down the throats of the Capitol audience. Now is going to be the last time you have the opportunity, unless you enjoy the idea of giving monologues in the arena." I told him with a grin on my face.

Booker's face reddened in anger. "Just because you don't have a sense of morality does not mean you can insult my beliefs. Back off Ms. Varas." He hissed in response.

"Back off from what? I'm just trying to have a conversation." I answered with a shrug, my grin not fading in the slightest.

"Then our conversation ends here." Booker huffed as he crossed his arms.

I shook my head as I looked forward, away from him. I was playing with fire with some of the comments I would make to Booker, but I didn't care. I knew precisely what I was doing. It was for the betterment of our little story if kept angering him. _If Booker only knew…_

To the average person, it looked as if both Booker and I were at each other's throats constantly, ready to kill the other. While I was actually certain that was the case for Booker, it wasn't for me. I could hardly care less if I was the one to kill Booker or not. What I was aware of, though, was that there was a definite story for the Gamemakers to take advantage of. There was so much visible animosity between the two of us that I knew we'd pique the interest of the Capitol audience. Booker and I were a tale of 'two bitter rivals of different ideologies, squaring off against each other in a battle to the death'. It was a gripping storyline that I know that the audience would want to see a conclusion to. The gamemakers would, therefore, have to make sure this conclusion would come about. In the process, I was very certain that the gamemakers would make sure that both Booker and I would remain alive until one of us dies at the hands of the other. Although my life would be on the line from then on, I could guarantee time periods where I wouldn't have to worry about dying to arena traps, mutts, or other tributes. The gamemakers would be fools to simply let Booker or I die before our story is complete.

The Hunger Games were always seen by people as these ruthless fights to the death. That's what they were for people like me: the people that actually participated in them. To the Capitol audience, however, they were simply a reality television show. They wanted to watch a story and it was the gamemakers job to supply them their story, even if they had to rig the actual competition.

It was a depressing thought; my life (and possible death) was nothing more than entertainment to these people. Still, I was aware of this fact and I knew that it was going to help keep me alive for quite some time. Any amount of time that I could guarantee myself that I'd be alive was all I could ask for at this point.

It was ironic that Booker volunteered with the explicit purpose of killing me. If the gamemakers had any common sense, he inadvertently saved my life for the first few days at least until our confrontation. After that, my life was in the roulette whether I would win or not. Nevertheless, the very idea that he 'saved my life', even if it was just for a few days, would piss him off so much. It served him right, though. Booker was a self-righteous hypocrite and his ideas on justice and morality were fanatical at best.

I proceeded to shake my head and look towards the screen, removing my thoughts about Booker and our 'story' as I watched the ending to Stephanie's interview. The interview seemed to be going well. The girl had a natural shyness and likability that the Capitol audience seemed to be appealed to. Not that I could blame them. I had to admit, the girl from District Five was surprisingly sweet and she came across very intelligent. Her interview ended soon after and the Capitol cheered for her. Stephanie waved shyly as she then walked out of the room.

Her district partner, Icarus, walked forward now as his name was called. The wiry boy, wearing a red long-sleeve shirt with a black pants and tie, shook the hand of Taric and sat down.

"Icarus Bolt, it's nice to finally meet you." Taric greeted him with a smile. "Say, any relation to Cascade Bolt, the boy from District Four?"

"No relation. Last time I checked, my family history doesn't go back to District Four." Icarus stated with a chuckle. "It is a funny coincidence though. The District Nine boy, Jason, even has my name as his last name."

"I noticed that as well! It helps us in the audience remember all of your names though, so that's kinda helpful." The interview responded.

There was some laughter afterward, both from Icarus and the audience. Luckily they couldn't see into the waiting room, or else they would have seen my eye roll. It was actually pathetic to me. There were people watching who couldn't remember our names? We were fighting to the death for their entertainment for fuck's sake! The least they owed us was to remember our names. Whenever I watched the Hunger Games, I made it a point to remember each and every tribute's names. Someone had to remember the names of the deceased. All I could hope for was that, if I died, people would actually remember my name and who I was.

Maybe it was because Icarus was the person before me, but his interview dragged on as I watched. The boy and Taric talked pleasantly with each other as they discussed Icarus's high training score and his plans for the Games. The District Five boy was quick to avoid the topic and spent most of his time joking and sharing some facts about his father and his cousin. Of the tributes so far, Icarus seemed to be the most aware of what he was saying and the one trying to steer conversation away from arena-based topics. Smart move honestly. The less the other tributes know, the better.

After what felt like forever, Icarus's interview finally ended. The boy stood up, bowed after receiving his applause, and walked out with a smile. Now, it was my turn. Finally. Time to get this over with.

"Now, let's give a big warm applause for the District Six female, Alexandra Varas!" Taric stated my name dramatically.

I walked forward through the door, letting a cocky smile grace my lips. I waved to the cheering crowd confidently, causing them to cheer louder. This was all some show to them, so it was time for me to give them a show.

"Alexandra, it's a pleasure to meet you." Taric greeted me politely as he held out his hand for me to shake.

"The pleasure is all mine." I replied, shaking his head. My fingers crossed a large, golden ring on his left index finger. It had the largest blue diamond I had ever seen in my entire life! I could only imagine how much that would sell for. That looked at least worth three months of rent at least!

As soon as those thoughts entered my head, I mentally scolded myself. I had to suppress my kleptomaniac tendencies. Now was not the time for those thoughts.

"Alexandra, you were one of the tributes I've been looking forward to meeting the most. You and your district partner made quite the first opinion! Am I right everybody?" Taric turned his attention to the audience. They responded by cheering loudly. I could even hear a few people chanting my name and a few others cheering Booker's name.

"Well I'm glad I stood out to you all." I replied, making sure I looked as irritated as I could. "Just I wish it was in better terms. I hope no one honestly believes that bullshit Booker was spouting at the reaping ceremony!"

"Oh, so you still reject it? You're not the thief he claims you are?" Taric questioned.

"No, I'm not." I lied smoothly.

Booker's 'thief' accusation took me by surprise when he first called me out in public, but after getting to know him, it wasn't too surprising. Booker was observant and he caught into little details easily about people. Nevertheless, despite it being the trigger for our 'rivalry' storyline, I wish he kept his accusation to himself and confronted me about that in private. I was going to adamantly deny his claims every time, but I didn't want him to say something to convince anyone of authority that I was a thief. Thievery was not tolerated whatsoever and, if I was already in the Hunger Games, I was afraid they may try and punish me through my family. I risked my life each day to provide for them and I was not going to let them suffer because some oaf with a justice complex decided to out me to the public.

I had to convince the audience that Booker was nothing more than a delusional liar - that he was full of shit.

"What makes him suspect you then?" Taric asked me.

"I'm not a hundred percent certain. Something about visiting the places that have been robbed. I didn't quite follow his logic and neither did our mentors or our escort." I dismissed his claims with a scoff. "One of the places that was robbed was a butchery. It made me a 'potential suspect' because I went to the butchery to buy meat? That made everybody in the district who liked to eat meat a potential suspect too then."

"Well, based on that example, it doesn't sound like very sound logic to me." The interviewer noted.

"Because it isn't. He entered the Games to 'punish' me because of some crimes he keeps claiming I did, but he has no solid evidence. I'm innocent and he's just throwing away his life for whatever reason." I rolled my eyes in response. "He's nothing more than a nuisance and I almost want to kill him myself in the arena."

A few gasps were heard from the audience. They were then replaced with a mixture of cheering and booing. I couldn't hide the smirk that developed from their reaction. That was probably enough fanning to the rivalry. _I'll leave the rest to Booker. _

"Well, I think we're very familiar with how you feel about Booker now." Taric noted with a hearty laugh. "Well, how about you tell us about yourself now? What does Alexandra, the 'not-thief', like?"

I actually laughed at that nickname.

"I'm nothing too special. Just another girl working in the factories trying to survive in District Six. I got a slightly big family, so every one of us has to do our part to survive." I answered with a shrug.

"Does family mean a lot to you?" He asked.

"Of course!" I nodded immediately, a small smile developing on my face. "My family is everything to me. My sister, Anna, is the sweetest and most polite person I've ever met. Frederick, my brother, acts like an idiot at times, but he's very charming, hard-working, and a great person to be with. My father is the funniest man in Panem, without a doubt. And my mother is the best woman in all of Panem, willing to sacrifice everything for her family."

"You're close to your mother in particular, aren't you?" Taric noted slyly. No doubt he brought her up because of the Quarter Quell twist. _Fuck that shit, by the way. _

"Of course I am. We always have been." I replied. I proceeded to laugh lightly as I thought about what my mother was thinking. "She's probably more worried about me than anything else, despite the Quarter Quell twist. Knowing her, I bet she thinks that the twist is just going to add more pressure on me and get myself killed."

"Well, she's watching right now. Do you have anything to say to maybe help her calm down?" He asked.

I said nothing for a few seconds. After a moment of thought, I looked towards the camera and smiled: not a cocky smirk or grin to make myself look tougher, but a sincere smile. _Maybe there was something I could say to calm my anxiety-driven mother down a little bit…_

"You know me Mom. I'll be fine." I spoke, hoping she would listen. The bell that signaled the end of the interview rang, but I continued to speak. "Don't worry about me. I'll be home soon."

"Mrs. Varas, your daughter has spoken. I hope you listen to her. I know I certainly did!" Taric laughed loudly as he pointed his fingers towards me. "Alexandra Varas, ladies and gentlemen."

The Capitol audience cheered loudly as I stood up and waved to them. The cheering had grown exponentially louder than it had been earlier. They most likely enjoyed seeing be 'emotional' on camera for them. I'm sure a few of them were touched. _But not touched enough to boycott the Hunger Games and find some way to cancel this bullshit…_

After I left the room, I shook those thoughts away. I was very anti-society and anti-government, but I couldn't let that take over my thoughts. If the Capitol had any reason to suspect that, I'd surely be dead. For now, I needed to focus on one thing: my survival. Tomorrow was going to be a hectic day. I felt like I had made enough preparations, both by fanning the rivalry with Booker and by getting pretty good with a bow-and-arrow, to stand a very good chance at getting out of the Hunger Games alive. That was all that should matter now. I had a family to get back to and a mother to keep alive.

* * *

**Xander Lugar's POV – District 8 Male**

_Just great._

I couldn't help but shake my head as Alexandra, the girl from District Six, walked off the stage to the screaming applause. She had a very good interview and made a strong name for herself. Her district partner, who was now walking through the doors to begin his interview, was guaranteed to do the same. Really, all the tributes, with the exception of Ethan and maybe Stephanie, had pretty solid interviews so far. The bar was being set high already even by the non-career tributes and I was going to have to measure up to them somehow.

That was going to be nearly impossible to do. At first glance, I'm just a thirteen year old with a score of 'four' compared to all these amazing career and non-career tributes. I'm not going to stand out on paper, even if I can talk about my skills with traps. They think I'm going to die in the bloodbath. And even if I get out, they think I'll die early and, therefore, they won't want to 'waste their money' on me.

_This is such crap. It's seriously pissing me off!_

I tightened my fists together into a ball as I stared a hole into the ground. I really wished I was alone right now. I wanted to be able to punch something or throw anything against a wall. There was nothing I could do in the room with the other tributes. All I could do was keep my anger bottled up and let it grow within me…

"Hey, are you okay?"

I looked up and faced Raven. She was looking at me with a concerned look in her eyes. That was something I really respected about her. She was a very kind, polite girl who seemed to care about everyone else around her.

"I'm fine…" I mumbled in reply, my fists tightening further. "Just thinking to myself."

"What are you thinking about? It doesn't seem to be anything 'fine'." She repeated my word-choice with a frown on her face.

"Just about a couple of things. Like how none of this interview thing matters. All I'm going to do is get a few pity claps from the 'sympathetic' people in the audience, have a horrible night sleep afterwards, and then die in the bloodbath. Probably at the hands of the guy from District One or maybe that psycho from District Ten." I answered honestly.

"You don't know if it's going to be that bad or not." Raven shook her head in disagreement. "The interview may go well and that could be a sign for the Games for you. You can't say it's going to be that bad and that you're going to die in the bloodbath right now!"

I scoffed loudly at that. This wasn't the first time we had a conversation like this and there was no way the two of us would reach an agreement about this. Raven was a very optimistic, bright girl. I, on the other hand, viewed myself as a withdrawn realist. We saw things in two different shades of colors. I didn't like seeing the word in a negative light, but whenever something dark was happening, I wasn't going to do what she does and try to sugarcoat it. I was going to see it the way it really was.

Besides, it made sense that she thought tonight would go well. Raven looked very, very cute in her dress. It was a tasteful white dress with a floral pattern that went down to the edge of the skirt. Her blonde hair, usually in a ponytail, was let down and was completely straight. To a boy like me, she was stunning. I, on the other hand, was wearing a crappy, generic black suit, pants, and tie that didn't even fit me right! The stylist didn't properly measure me and I was forced to wear too tight clothes.

Raven opened her mouth to respond, but she was halted as the sound of applause from the television screen could be heard. We turned our heads. Booker was standing up from his chair. He shook Taric's hand before he turned to face the crowd and gave them a very formal bow. They responded by cheering even louder. I didn't pay any attention to his interview, but I could tell it went over pretty well. The audience was cheering as loudly as they did for his district partner after all!

Winnie, the girl from District Seven, walked through the doors to begin her interview. Once she left, Raven turned her attention back to me.

"Xander, it's the Hunger Games. There are so many variables that we can't predict. Period. Even if you have to doubt yourself, don't give up hope just yet. Something may happen." She told me.

_All lies to help me feel better. _Nevertheless, I realized I was probably being rude to her. She was just trying to help me feel better and I was acting kinda awful to her. My bad mood wasn't her fault after all.

"I'll try to think that way." I answered with a sigh. I really wish I could. "Thanks Raven."

"Don't thank me! Just trying to help. We're district partners. We have to look after each other." She replied playfully smile as she nudged me with her elbow.

I blushed at the contact. Raven had a knack for getting under my skin, no matter how bad my mood may be at the time. It was actually kinda weird to me. I usually liked being around older kids as opposed to people my age. Raven was my age, but it didn't feel like she was. She was mature but also very fun to talk to. She reminded me of Amaya and the other people her age. That was what probably attracted me the most to Raven…

I immediately shook my head, trying to get the blush off my face. Yeah, I kinda developed a little crush on Raven. Who could really blame me? She's a really cute girl and she's one of the sweetest people I've ever met! But a crush was all our relationship was going to be. The Hunger Games is not an environment for romance. Every few years, you see two tributes fall in love with each other and then, after a brief period of happiness, they get tragically split apart as one of them dies. That's the rules of the Hunger Games. There will never be another Katniss and Peeta from the seventy-fourth Hunger Games and anyone thinking that 'true love' will keep both of them alive was being horribly naïve.

That's why I was glad I was not officially allied with Raven. We weren't going to work together in the arena. If, and that's a big if because she probably would never share my feelings, we did become closer like that in the arena, it would only hurt even worse in the arena when one of us has to die. I'd rather my relationship with her be nothing more than a silly little crush right now.

In an attempt to get my mind off of the future, I turned my attention towards the television screen. Winnie was just about done with her interview. The interview looked like it was going pretty well. The little girl made herself out to be so cute and innocent, which wasn't that hard considering the little green dress she was wearing made her like a Capitolian doll. She talked a lot about her twin brother and how he was waiting for her home. The audience seemed to be sympathizing with her a lot, but I noticed that a few of them actually seemed interested in the girl. Winnie was very careful with how she worded her interview and she definitely was dropping hints that there was more to her than meets the eye. Based on the applause that she received after her interview ended, I think she was able to make them think that too.

_If she can make them have faith in her, maybe I can too._

Once Winnie left the stage, her district partner came up. Raegae, looking oddly nice in a green button-up shirt and brown pants, walked up with a large grin on his face. He quickly started cracking jokes with Taric and earned a lot of laughter from the audience. It was odd; he actually seemed slightly charming as he made everyone, even me, laugh.

"So Raegae, what do you miss the most about District Seven?" Taric questioned with a grin after Raegae told a story about a prank he did a few years ago. "Your little brother maybe?"

"Yeah, I miss Sycamore. A ton. But I don't really talk with my family much, so I guess I can't really miss him too much." Raegae noted with a shrug. "If I had to be honest, I guess miss the women of District Seven the most."

"A ladies man, are you?" The interviewer commented slyly. "Are the women in the Capitol not in your taste?"

"Nah, don't get me wrong; the Capitol women are really hot. It's just I haven't had sex in all my time here." He grumbled in response. "All I want is a good, mind-numbingly awesome fuck, but no one's interested. All the girls I've met here are bitches."

_So much for being charming…_

"He's awful." I rolled my eyes at that answer.

"You have no idea." Raven replied with a slight shiver. "The way he looked at some of the older girls during the training hall was just disturbing. I don't think he has any respect for women. He's just… creepy."

After his response, Raegae's interview fell apart. Both Taric and the audience stopped laughing at his jokes. By the time his interview ended, he received a few boos mixed in with the polite clapping. Raegae seemed pretty pissed as he walked away, refusing to shake Taric's hand. Looking at his reaction, he probably didn't realize he said anything offensive.

"Well, it's my turn now…" Raven mumbled with a sigh. "Wish me luck."

"You'll do fine." I responded with a light chuckle. "Good luck though."

She gave me a quick smile as Taric called out her name. She then walked forward through the doors.

"Mr. Taric, it is a pleasure to meet you." Raven greeted Taric before he said anything with a curtsey.

"The pleasure is all mine, Ms. Raven Bell." Taric replied with a chuckle as Raven took her seat. "How are you feeling? Excited to be here?"

"Oh, of course, but also kinda nervous. This is the first time I've had so many cameras on me. I hope I don't embarrass myself or something. I want to be Raven Bell, the District Eight female and not Raven Bell, the laughingstock of Panem." Raven answered with a giggle.

Her joke earned a light-hearted laugh from the audience and Taric.

"I'm sure you won't have to worry about that. You seem too much like a polite, lovely young woman to joke about like that." He told her charmingly.

Raven's interview went over really well. She was a natural talker and made many jokes and quips that got the Capitol audience laughing. They fell in love with her, her sense of humor, and her overall demeanor. She was just like a beacon of positive energy up there. How could anyone not like someone so polite, funny, and mature? Her interview flew by and she received an extremely loud applause for someone our age. She blushed a little at how much of a response she received, but she was mostly grinning the entire time. She made her way off the stage gracefully, very pleased with how it went.

… _Now I have to top that._

"And now, let's give the District Eight male a round of applause. Everyone, here is Xander Lugar!" Taric introduced my name.

With a gulp, I walked forward through the door to the interview room. After looking at the people one time, I froze in place. The room was filled with so many people, all of whom were staring at me. There were so many people…

"Uh, Xander?"

Immediately, my head turned towards Taric. The interview was standing up from his chair and was looking at me in confusion.

"S-Sorry." I stuttered in response, trying to hide a blush of embarrassment as I quickly walked over to my chair. We both then took our seats. "I've just never seen so many people in one place before. I'm not used to being around so many people."

"I understand. This must be uncomfortable for an introvert such as yourself." Taric laughed in response. I felt my cheeks redden further in embarrassment and my eyes narrow in anger. I didn't enjoy being mocked like that. "How are you feeling though?"

"I'm okay." I answered with a nervous laugh. "You don't need to worry about me. I'm not nervous enough that I'd throw up again."

That earned a few laughs from the audience. The 'vomit' scene probably made me look pathetic, but maybe acknowledging like that would make people see me as funny.

"I hope you aren't! I'd have to clean it up if you did." Taric exclaimed.

"Oh, if that's the case..." I immediately held my head over the edge of the chair and made gagging noises as if I was about to throw up again.

This earned even further laughter from the audience. Even Taric laughed. I sat back down in my seat properly, a smile on my face. _Maybe this whole thing wouldn't be as bad as I thought._

"My, we got a few jokers this year. I'm glad. I could always use an extra laugh or two!" The interview told me with a smile. "Anyway, how about you tell us a little about yourself?"

"I don't have much to say; I just work at one of the textile factories. Before I was reaped, I actually got a new job working at a company that works on dyes." I told him.

"Do you like it?" He asked me.

"Nah, but it paid well. That's all that matters I guess." I sighed in response.

"Well, where would you rather work if you could do what you want?" Taric continued to question.

"Maybe in carpentry or something? Or my own workshop? I don't know. Just some place I could build things." I replied. I started to poke my index fingers together. "I, um, like to build and design things. My grandfather always told me I could make anything if I really tried. I've only done small things, like a few figurines and stuff, but I hope to one day build a nice house for my family."

"That's an admirable goal. And who knows, maybe you'll be able to one day." Taric smiled in response. "What's your family like? We'd love to know more about them, especially your older sister!"

"I live with Amaya and my grandfather. Both Amaya and I moved in with him when our parents died in a house fire." I told him, a sad frown developing on my face.

The atmosphere in the room died down slightly. I could feel the pitying looks that a few members of the audience were giving me.

"I'm sorry to hear about that." Taric responded, his smile disappearing. He was giving me a similar look that the audience gave me.

Immediately, a dark thought entered my head. It actually caused me to start crying. _Oh God… _

"D-Don't be sorry." I replied between my sobs. "Amaya and I… w-we're close. We, and our grandfather, are all we have left in the world. And m-my grandfather is getting up in age and he can't do as many things as he used to. He's not doing good and he needs someone to look after him…" I stopped talking to rub away the tears. However, I couldn't stop my crying. "It's why… I… I need to win. If I don't… th-then both Amaya and I will be dead. He won't be able to take care of himself alone. He would p-probably…"

I couldn't continue; I just continued to sob louder. The audience's 'pitying' looks seemed to increase further. I swear I could fear a few other people sobbing with me in the audience.

A few seconds of silence passed before I continued to speak again. "I-I don't want Amaya to die. I don't want my grandfather to die. That's why… I need to win. At all costs."

"You have the motivation. You can do it." Taric replied, trying to smile lightly in response.

The bell rang soon after, signaling the end of my interview. Taric reintroduced me to the audience and I received a loud applause. I could still hear a few 'sniffing' and 'sobbing' noises from the audience. I tried to wave in farewell, but I simply couldn't. I left the room as quickly as I could and brought my hands back up to my face. I continued to cry, but not for the reason everyone thought I was crying.

I felt absolutely dirty and sick with myself. My fear about my grandfather's life was something I had no intention of talking about with anyone at all. However, after seeing how the audience react to the news of my dead parents, I couldn't help but mention it. The Capitol audience was predictable; I knew it would make me sympathetic to them. If I made it past the bloodbath, there would definitely be a few people who would sponsor me to try to help me get back home to my family to keep my sister and grandfather alive.

I had just used my family: my deceased parents, my sister, and my grandfather. I used them to get pity in an attempt to get sponsors. It felt so dirty… so disgusting. I couldn't believe such a thought could come to my head.

_Whatever it took to win, I guess…_

* * *

**Maddison Holland's POV – District 10 Female**

Back in District Ten, I always hated watching the interview sessions. It was painful to learn so much about other kids who were just going to die at the end of the Games. Actually being here, waiting for my own interview, was much worse. Now, I got to be up-close and personal as I heard about the lives and stories of the twenty-three other tributes that were going to have to die so I could return to my family. This was simply fucked up.

I looked downward as Xander, the boy from District Eight, walked away from the interview room. It seemed like every year, there were a few tributes with a sob story. Xander's story of his family was very painful to listen to. Whoever killed him would be responsible for the death of his older sister and his grandfather and would effectively kill off his entire family. It was already bad enough knowing that he was just thirteen years old, but I doubt I could feel comfortable with myself if I was the one to kill him. Luckily, he looked like the type to die early. I'd gladly pass on the burden of killing him to someone else.

It made me feel slightly selfish to hope he died early, but was I simply supposed to roll over and let him win? Or any of the other tributes with a sad life? Hell no! I wasn't ready to die yet. Furthermore, I also had a life on my shoulders as well: Dustin's. Even if I was going to feel bad about doing it, I was going to have to kill to win. The last thing I wanted was to have my little brother die with me when I was easily capable of saving his life.

"Heh. Hehehehehe."

A shiver went down my spine as I looked behind me. Logan was standing right behind me in line, laughing maniacally. He looked absolutely insane, despite the fancy white suit, pants, and red bowtie he was wearing. The stylist tried to make him look civilized, but he strangely looked more deranged in his fancy clothes somehow.

"I'll consider going after him myself if he makes it past the bloodbath." He mumbled to himself more than anyone else. "Kill the boy from District Eight and I technically get two additional kills. That's rather tempting."

A scowl developed on my face as I faced the boy.

"You're a digustin' ass, y'know that?" I told him sharply.

"Like I care what you think. I wasn't even talking to you." Logan hissed quietly. "Again, watch who you talk to Maddison. Your mouth won't help you escape death."

The same shiver sensation returned, but I ignored it and opted to glare at Logan.

"I'll watch meh mouth when ya start listenin' to your own advice." I retorted with an eye roll. Logan glared in response, but gave no verbal reply.

Sure, Logan was an absolute creep, but after the train ride and seeing how he treated Julian, I was over his crap. Normally, I kept my problems with someone to myself. My parents raised me right and I was taught how to politely deal with people I didn't like. Their lessons were impossible to follow when dealing with this… shit stain of a human being. He said and acted in a way that no man should.

I knew I would probably have to fight Logan in the arena at some point, maybe early if he really did want to hunt me down, but I didn't really care. As intimidating as he was, I knew he wouldn't be as threatening in the arena as he liked to make himself seem like. He talked a lot of shit, but he clearly underestimated me. For some reason, he saw me underneath him. By the time we fought, he would realize how much of a mistake that was. He may have scored an eleven, but scores never meant much in practice in the arena. Most people with similar high scores never win. He was not going to win and he was the one tribute I already knew I would feel no remorse in killing.

"Wow, Demetriana, you look amazing! You look like some kinda of goddess!"

My thoughts of Logan disappeared as I faced the television screen in the room. The girl from District Nine, Demetriana, was already in her seat in the interview room. She was wearing a white skater dress. Her legs were crossed, showing off brown gladiator shoes and there was a visible halo-like headband made to look like grain on her head.

"That's what the stylist and I were hoping for." Demetriana giggled lightly. "It's based on the goddess Demeter, who is what I'm named after."

"Demeter? That's some ancient religious history for everyone in the audience to look up after the night is done." Taric commented in response. He earned a laugh from the audience.

I didn't know what 'Demeter' was supposed to symbolize, but Demetriana did look something like a goddess. She seemed very comfortable in her dress. Unlike me.

Instinctively, my hands started to rub the fabric of my long white dress. Black dots were scattered all across the dress. It was supposed to be some cute attempt by my stylist to resemble a cow to tie in the connection to District Ten, but then why couldn't I just be allowed to wear the rancher outfit from the tribute parade? I felt so much more comfortable in and definitely represented what District Ten actually stood for! However, I was stuck in this dress, and as a self-proclaimed tomboy who couldn't remember the last time I wore anything 'girly' like a dress, I felt simply uncomfortable.

I was just grateful I wouldn't have to wear one of these things in the arena. Disregarding my own personal discomfort, dresses simply weren't practical. When I go into the arena, I wanted to wear something that would be easy to move around in and wouldn't trip me up.

Demetriana, who seemingly went by 'Demi', had a decent interview. She was very polite, cooperative, and had a self-deprecating style of humor whenever Taric brought up her chances in the arena that made her seem modest and likable. Then again, her self-deprecation came across as more factual than joking at times. Maybe the Capitolian audience wouldn't see through her act, but she came across to me as slightly depressed during the whole interview. The wide smile she had on her face the entire time was fake. Once her interview ended and she was walking away, for the briefest of seconds, her smile dropped. Her face looked desperate and she quickly left the room, for whatever reason.

… _Hopefully she's okay._ Tonight was going to be our last night before we entered the arena. She deserved a good last night before the chaos of tomorrow. We all were owed that at least.

Once she left, Jason, her district partner, walked forward through the doors. I was now the person at the front of the line. I cracked my knuckles immediately in preparation. I was pumped to get the interview out of the way!

Jason's interview, in one word, was awkward. He looked absolutely miserable up there, wearing his tight brown jacket and black pants. The guy was very hesitant and uneasy whenever he responded to Taric's questions. He didn't seem to enjoy talking about himself or his chances in the arena. To be completely honest, he looked more uneasy than Xander did when he was up on the stage! It was strange to think that he was actually a volunteer for this thing…

As if reading my mind, Taric brought the topic up.

"So, Jason, we all remember you volunteering for that little boy. Now, I don't pretend to know your relation with him or your reasons, but I have to ask you: do you regret it? After all, you didn't know about the Quarter Quell twist this year." Taric questioned softly.

For a brief moment, Jason said nothing. He closed his eyes and started fidgeting with his fingers. A few seconds passed before he finally opened his eyes and looked forward with a defeated look in his eyes.

"I'll never regret volunteering. The boy was going to die here in the arena, and his mother or father would have died with him. How can I honestly say I regret it after that?" He answered with a sigh. "It hurts a lot that I got Lacy involved in this, though. She's been my best friend and she's been there for me my entire life. She even made me this." He pulled down his shirt collar slightly, revealing a brown, handmade necklace. That must have been his district token. "I… she means everything to me. And I'm going to do anything for her to make sure she's okay."

"… Are you prepared to kill, though?" Taric prodded.

Tears started to develop in Jason's eyes. He said nothing. However, there was a look of pure determination in his tear-filled eyes. They spoke what he was unable to say; he really was ready to do _anything_ to keep his friend alive.

His interview ended a few seconds later. He and Taric had an uneasy handshake before he walked off the stage, wiping away his tears.

"And now, it is time for the lovely District Ten. Let's give a big welcome for their female tribute, Maddison Holland!" He stated my name.

_Now's the time for my entrance!_

I pushed open the doors and walked into the interview room. Taric held out his hand for me to shake, but I instead pulled him into a hug. The interview blinked in response before he returned my hug good-naturedly. We parted a second after and took our seats.

"Well, it's nice to meet you Maddison! That was a first for me. Most people just like to shake my hand." Taric noted with a laugh.

"Well, that's how meh Dad taught me how ta properly greet somebody. A handshake is jus' so impersonal." I answered with a similar laugh.

The audience cheered, approving of my gesture. Taric shook his head, unable to hide his smile.

"I wish more people thought like you and your father. You set the bar high for these last five tributes already Maddison. I'll be thoroughly disappointed if I don't get at least one hug!" He joked.

"Meh apologies then." I smirked in response.

"No need for you to apologize!" Taric claimed immediately. "Anyway, let's talk about you Maddison."

I shrugged in response. "There ain't much to talk about. I don't do much other than tend to the cattle."

"Ah! I knew you were a cattle worker!" He exclaimed excitedly. "I've seen a few tributes wear rancher costumes from your district, but none have ever looked as comfortable in one as you did during the parade."

"Well, what can I say? I love meh job!" I answered honestly, my smirk turning into a more natural smile. "I've been workin' on the family ranch for ten years and I can't imagine any other life bein' right for me, y'know what I'm saying?"

"I understand completely. We all have our calling. I couldn't imagine doing anything other than interviewing you lovely tributes each year!" Taric noted with a proud smile.

The audience cheered in response. I simply kept smiling in response, but I said nothing. I had to hold back the urge to tell Taric that his 'calling' was interviewing twenty-three kids with death sentences each year and giving them false hopes that they would make it out of the arena alive.

"Well, Maddison, as a cattle worker, do you think you have any experiences from the job that'll help you out in the actual arena?" He asked me.

My eyes closed for a second as I processed my answer. I had to be careful how I answered this to make sure I didn't come across too threatening to the other tributes, _particularly_ the Career Pack. At the same time, I wanted as many sponsors as I could get. I needed to find a balance…

"… Well of course." I shrugged in response. "I'm used to wakin' up early and following a hardworkin' routine each and ev'ry day. I also would like to think I'm pretty damn good with a rope. I'd say working on the ranch definitely gives me a li'l bit of experience that'll really help me during the Games."

"A rope, huh? I don't remember ever seeing a tribute use simply a rope as a weapon. I'm curious to see what you can do with it." Taric commented.

_I can disarm someone with it. I can trap someone with it. I can strangle someone with it. I can hang someone and leave them to rot with it_. There were a couple of things I _could _theoretically do with a rope – some of which were actually relatively disturbing that I probably would never do. Nevertheless, it was a tool I was very familiar with how to use and it would be an extremely effective weapon in my hands.

"You'll see in time. So will the other tributes." I told him, cracking my knuckles.

I got a few cheers from the audience, who were excited to see me seemingly read to enter the Games. Taric grinned as he asked me his next question: "So, you're ready for the arena right now, aren't you?"

"Damn straight! I've been preppin' myself these past few days and I really think I'm gonna kick some ass in there." I answered, trying to come across as confident and cocky as I could. "I'm a competitive girl and I ain't gonna let some punks from the other districts take me down."

"I'm certain that no 'punk' will be able to win a fight with you." Taric laughed in response. "Anyway, let's change topics for the last few seconds. I'd like to ask you a little about your family, in particular your little brother."

"My whole family works on the ranch together. I can't 'member the last time we were ever part for no more than a day or two. It's hell bein' away from everybody for so long." I answered with a sigh. With the exception of Dustin to motivate me to train harder, I really didn't like to think of my family too much. It _was_ hell being away from them and it hurt a lot to think that I could maybe not see them ever again…

"How close are you with your little brother?" He asked.

"Very. Meh Dad asked me to show him the ropes to the ranch when he started workin' at six and we've been close ever since." I said with a light smile as I thought about him. "The cattle don't like him much, but he really tries to take care of them despite that. He's a good kid without an evil bone in his body and he's gonna become an amazin' guy when he grows up." My eyes narrowed slightly at Taric. "I was already determin'd to win the Games when I was reaped, but when I heard the damn Quarter Quell twist, my determination doubled. The Games are gonna be more personal. I don't give a damn what I have ta do, I'm gonna come back alive for Dustin. There ain't a single thing that's gonna stop me!"

The interview bell rang, ending the interview. Taric stood up from his seat.

"Well, I think we all can see how much your brother means to you. We wish you the best of luck – for both of your sakes." He told me before he turned his attention to the audience. "Maddison Holland, everybody!"

I waved proudly and confidently, accepting the large applause. I then walked off the stage, ready head back and get ready for the next day.

One of the things I hated when watching the Hunger Games back was seeing the tributes that were just so damn cocky in their interviews. Now, I realized exactly why they came across that way. This was the last shot for sponsors and you _needed_ to be cocky to come across as capable to the audience. After that performance, I felt comfortable that I earned enough sponsors to be fine in the arena in that regard.

I was not stupid. Sponsorships weren't going to guarantee I was going to live. Whether I survive or not was going to be based on my own skills. However, I was a stubborn, determined girl who wanted to keep my little brother alive. The other tributes better be ready for the fight of their lives, because I was willing to do things that would damn me to hell to come back to District Ten alive just to make sure Dustin stayed alive.

* * *

**Emery Aspen's POV – District 12 Female**

For once, it would be cool if District Twelve could go first. I realized that, overall, District Twelve was the least favorite district of the Capitol, but shouldn't that mean that us Twelve tributes should be the first two so the audience could just 'get us over with' before they moved on to the interviews of their precious favorite districts? That would be a win for them and a win for me, as I could get just back to the living quarters and actually try and get some sleep for tomorrow?

At least tonight was almost over. The creepy District Ten guy, Logan, was making his way through the doors to the interview room. All that was left was him and the District Eleven tributes, then it would be my turn. I could finally get this shit out of the way soon.

With that in mind, I adjusted my glasses and paid attention to the television screen and watched Logan's interview in hopes to kill the last bit of time. Completely unsurprisingly, he bombed his interview. He really seemed like a guy who could not function socially. He glared in response to Taric's questions and seemed to only give one-word answers to most of them in his quiet, angry tone-of-voice. The camera operators would occasionally cut to the reactions of the audience and most of them seemed annoyed at best and disturbed at worst by Logan's interview. Despite that 'eleven' score, I highly doubted he was going to get a single sponsor after tonight.

"So, Logan, let's talk a little bit about the arena." Taric questioned with a nervous chuckle as he tried to find some topic that Logan would talk about. "Do you have any plans?"

"I plan to kill." He answered plainly, still glaring at Taric.

"Good to hear…" The interviewer, again, chuckled nervously in response. "So, I take it we can expect to see you taking down a tribute or two in the bloodbath."

"No." Logan replied immediately. A grin developed on his face: one that caused me to cringe. "Why would I rush in and kill right away when I can take my time during the entire arena? The bloodbath is too fast-paced… too quick… too impersonal. I want to have fun with all of my kills. I want them to last a while. I want to see my prey suffer, and I can't do that to my standards during the bloodbath."

_The fuck?_

Logan's interview ended shortly after. He received very little applause, as most of the audience seemed disgusted with the guy. _Rightfully so! _I knew there was something messed up the boy when I saw him smile after hearing the Quarter Quell twist and he's done nothing these past few days but justify my feelings about him. There was no other tribute here who deserved to die more than him.

"So yeah… that guy's a thing. He's someone to avoid at all costs in the arena." Yaro mumbled in response.

I turned around to face my district partner. Unlike other the tributes who were dressed exceedingly well, Yaro was wearing a plain black t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and a pair of black sandals. His stylist made some weird comment that he looked better naturally than in fancy clothes, so she handed him the simplest of clothes she could find. It was a weird decision that I didn't know how it would be appreciated by the audience. Even my stylist had me wear a long, black dress.

Then again, Yaro was from the seam and his family was dirt poor. Seeing him in fancy clothes felt wrong and they probably felt wrong for him too. It was probably a lot more natural for everyone to see the guy in more casual clothes.

"Yeah, we should avoid him at all costs, but that shouldn't be too hard. If the careers have any brains this year, Psycho will be their first target and he will die in the bloodbath." I answered dismissively.

"'Psycho?' So that's his nickname?" Yaro questioned as he gave me an amused look.

"It's fitting, and don't you dare deny it." I rolled my eyes in response. Yaro gave me shit every now and then about my habit of nicknaming people. Then again, I gave him shit for all the jokes he said. I guess it could be considered 'revenge' on his part.

"I'm not judging. It's the most accurate nickname for the guy." He replied with a laugh. He was always laughing. That's why he was 'Joker' to me.

The two of us stopped talking as the girl from District Eleven, Florina, walked through the interview doors to begin her interview. She seemed overly bright and happy, which was accentuated by her bright yellow dress. Her dress was clearly designed to represent the sun for whatever reason. Just like Maddison, she greeted Taric with a hug. The interviewer smiled brightly as he returned her hug.

"Florina, I must thank you for the hug. Now I won't be disappointed for the rest of the night now that I got another hug!" Taric laughed loudly as they separated from their hug.

"Well, I didn't want you to be disappointed!" She giggled in response as they took their seats.

"Hmm… I'll give Taric another hug during my interview." Yaro told me.

"I won't." I replied with an eye roll. Taric was an overdramatic freak in my mind that I've always disliked even before I came out here. He pretended like he cared about the tributes during the interviews, but I could tell he didn't give a shit about any of us. I'd like to avoid any physical interaction with him as much as I could.

Florina's interview went over well with the audience. She and Taric hit it off well and they spent a lot of talking rapid-fire about a bunch of different shit. I couldn't even register everything she was saying with him. I did catch her mention that she was the daughter of one of the victors and that this victor-father of hers was actually the person tied to her for the Quarter Quell twist. She had a lot of things she wanted to say about him and her moth back in District Eleven. By the time her interview ended, everyone gave her a loud applause. She had talked so much with Taric than any of the other and, because of that, everyone in the audience thought that they knew her better than the other tributes so far.

Once her interview was over, Florina walked out of the room and was replaced with her district partner, Bane. The guy was literally the polar opposite of Florina in every way. In terms of clothes, he wore all black clothes with the exception of a blue bowtie over his tuxedo in comparison to Florina's bright 'sun-like' dress. Unlike Florina's positive demeanor, Bane walked quietly and looked as if he was trying to disappear. He barely acknowledged Taric as he took his seat for the interview.

His interview was rather boring and generic. Bane made no attempts to talk much with the exception of a few quiet comments. He seemed overly pessimistic about the experience and how he thinks the arena will go for him.

"Hmm…" Yaro mumbled as he studied the television screen intently.

"Have something to say Joker?" I asked him.

"Not really, just thinking…" He replied. "I think he's hiding something."

"… Like what?" I gave Yaro a confused look.

"Just watch and listen to him." He told me, pointing towards the television screen.

I nodded and started to pay more attention to Bane's interview.

"So, what are your plans for the arena Bane? If you're that worried about your chances, then you probably have something planned to maybe help you get out." Taric questioned as he looked at Bane with pitying eyes.

"I… well… I don't know. J-Just run away from the bloodbath for now…" Bane answered softly as he poked his index fingers together and looked downward. "All I can really do is hope something h-happens to the others. I need a miracle, but who am I kidding? I'm going to die and I'm going to get my father killed with me…"

Taric immediately responded by questioning Bane further about his pessimism and his relationship with his father. I turned my attention back to Yaro and gave him another look.

"Well, what exactly is he hiding?" I asked him again.

"I'm not sure, but he's hiding something. I just think he's so careful with his words for someone who is supposed to be scared and depressed. He gets Taric off-topic from certain questions and always brings it back to his likelihood of dying. The way he talks seems so fake to me…" Yaro answered thoughtfully.

"So you think he's hiding his 'skills' or something?" I questioned.

The 'Joker' shrugged in response. "Well that's the only thing he _could_ be hiding. I saw him back at the knife training stand and he was pretty bad, but now I'm starting to wonder if he's really as bad as he looked."

"… We'll talk with Business before we enter the arena about him." I mumbled back. If Bane really was more threatening than he appeared, then we would need to exercise caution around him. Maybe try and get him out of the way early or something.

Bane's interview didn't last much longer. Once the bell rang, he quickly stood up and bolted from the room before Taric or the audience could really react. A few seconds passed before Taric turned to face the cameras.

"And last, but not least, it is time to introduce the District Twelve tributes! First up, we have Emery Aspen!" He exclaimed excitedly.

I rolled my eyes as I started to walk forward towards the door.

"Break a leg up there Emery. Strictly metaphorically though; don't actually break your leg now. That would be kinda bad for us in the arena." Yaro called out to me.

I shook my head, but gave him a thumbs up gesture in response. I then entered the interview room and walked toward my chair. I mostly ignored the audience cheering and simply sat down.

"Emery, it's nice to meet you. How are you doing?" Taric immediately started his questions.

"Tired. I'm ready to go to sleep." I deadpanned. I could hear a few chuckles from the audience.

"Long day today?" He looked at me understandingly.

"You have no idea. There were so many preparations today that needed to be done for this interview." I replied with a yawn. "I'm going to try and go to sleep as soon as I can. I need to be awake and alert before the Games tomorrow."

"Well, I hope you can get your sleep!" Taric laughed in response. "Now, tell me a little bit about yourself? What's life like in District Twelve for you?"

I tightened my fist and resisted the urge to punch the guy. I hated how he tried to pull out personal information out of all us even though he gave a rat's ass about our lives: he was just doing his job and trying to entertain the Capitol. We didn't mean a damn thing to him. I hated just how phony he was. However, I knew it would be stupid to take out my anger with him now on camera. Unlike someone like Psycho, I knew the importance of sponsorships. Therefore, I needed to be as polite and friendly as possible… unfortunately. It would be fun to sucker punch Taric in the face though probably…

"My parents are merchants and run a clothing store in District Twelve. We live in a pretty nice house right above the store." I answered with a shrug.

"The daughter of merchants, are you? Quite rare to see someone like you in the arena from your district." Taric commented.

"Yeah, I'm not some little kid from the seam that gets reaped most years. I actually stand a chance to win this year." I told him with a confident smirk. My confidence was appreciated by the audience, who stared to cheer.

"I'm sure we'd all be excited to see that. There haven't been many District Twelve winners in a while." Taric noted with a laugh. "What are you planning to do in the arena then? Any strategies ready to get out alive?"

"Why spoil the surprise? You'll see." I crossed my arms, dismissing his question. "All I say is that I promise that you all will get a good show from me. I'll definitely be kicking some ass!"

"Well, we're going to wait impatiently to see!" He replied, laughing even louder. "Well, since you are confident that you'll be the victor, what do you have planned after the Hunger Games? Are you going to take over your parents' shop maybe?"

"Hmm? No. I love my parents and I respect what they do, but it's not for me. I'd go absolutely insane working in a shop like that." I answered. I then thought of an answer to his first question; something I never actually thought before. What was I going to do with my future? "… I really don't know what I'll do. I've never been the kind of girl to plan things out like that. I like to live life day-by-day and just see how things go. I'll find something to do one day, but for now, I think I'll just enjoy the ride until I find out what it is."

"An excellent motto!" Taric praised. I heard a lot of people cheering loudly from the audience. Most likely they were people who agreed with me. "Anyway, we don't have much time left, so I wanted to ask you a quick question about your friend, Aiden."

"What about him?" I asked back defensively.

"Well, I'm just curious about your relationship. From what I've heard, he's a boy your age that you grew up with. Is there 'anything' going on between you two?" He asked with a smirk on his face.

"Oh GOD no." I rolled my eyes and resisted the urge to throw up at the mental image of me and Aiden together. This wasn't the first time that I (and Aiden) have been asked this question and it always pissed me off. Honestly, was it that hard for some people to realize that a guy and a girl can actually be _just _friends? I mean, seriously! "It's strictly platonic. If anything, he's more like a brother to me and I'm a sister to him"

"Well, how about you tell us more about him then. What does he mean to you then?" Taric proceeded to question.

"We've known each for eleven years now and we've been best friends ever since. Aiden's a fun-loving guy and probably a 'nicer' version of me. We do tons of shit together that I couldn't do with anyone else." I answered vaguely. I couldn't elaborate any further due to the fear of getting us in trouble with the government. There was no doubt someone would get offended if I mentioned that the two of us vandalized places just for the thrill of it and would maybe try to punish us… or our families. "He's always been there in my life and I'd do anything for him, just like would for me." I proceeded to turn my attention towards the Capitol audience. "Do you all want to know exactly what I would do for him?"

I heard a few choruses of 'what' from the audience. A grin developed on my face as I pounded my right fist into my open left hand.

"I'd kill anyone and everyone."

The interview bell rang at that point. Taric reintroduced me to the crowd and I was greeted with the loudest applause that I remembered hearing for a District Twelve tribute. It was all for me!

I quickly left the interview room, feeling very confident in myself that I earned a good amount of sponsors. Now, today could finally end and I could get some sleep…

* * *

Yaro's interview ended up being as much of a success as mine. While I did call him out on his shitty jokes, he was actually a funny and charming guy. The Capitol audience ate his shit up and he and Taric had fun talking about every single topic they could. He left with a loud applause as well. Considering we were allying together, it was good that his interview went well. There was no doubt that our alliance will have earned a lot of sponsors after today!

After the interviews finished, the two of us were escorted back to the living quarters. After some brief conversation with Donovan and Anya, it was now time for us to head to bed. We were going to be woken up early tomorrow. It _was_ the big day after all…

"Are you worried about tomorrow?" Yaro asked me as he walked towards our bedrooms.

"Are you?" I asked him back.

"Nooo, of course not. It's only the single most important day of my life where my life and the life of my best friend is at risk in a fight to the death. Not worried at all." He replied sarcastically with a chuckle.

Yaro's jokes used to piss me off so much, but now I could do nothing but snicker lightly in response to them. I know that they were just a coping mechanism for him. Deep down, he wasn't in the mood for a laugh. He was worried, just as much as I or anybody else was about this…

"Well, I'm feeling the same way as you are. But hey, we both did good today. We'll be fine." I told him with a smile. I jabbed him lightly in his shoulder, pushing him back slightly. "The two of us are going to kick ass."

"And Kaylee." He added with a chuckle.

"… And Business too, I guess." I grumbled in response. Kaylee was only working with us to make sure we had some more fighting power. Unlike with Yaro, however, I did not like her in the slightest. If any of us had to die early, I'd hope it would be her.

The two of us eventually arrived at our bedroom doors. Yaro opened his door and I opened mine. We then turned to look at each other one last time.

"Hey, you're right. We'll be good. It's going to be hell, but we'll be good." Yaro told me with a smile. "Get some good sleep tomorrow and good luck Emery!"

"You too Yaro…" I replied with the same smile.

With those words, the two of us went to our own beds and tried to get some sleep in preparation for the most important day of our lives…

* * *

**Author's Note**: Here's the interview chapter! :) Sorry it took a little longer than usual. I've been kinda busy these past few days with college classes and stuff with my life. :/ Nevertheless, the chapter is finally complete and here it is!

I hope you enjoyed the interviews and found them entertaining. They were kinda a pain to write, but I did have fun. Who's interviews stood out the most to you do you think?

So... I have one more chapter planned of the pre-arena. After that, it'll be time for the bloodbath and it'll be time for the arena to start. Wow... It's almost time everybody. I'm so excited and nervous to begin! I posted a poll on my profile like a few of you suggested about your thoughts on the bloodbath. Vote and let me know fast! I'm very curious... :P

Anyway, I won't keep bothering you guys too much longer. Thank you so much everybody for reading and all the support you have all given me with my story so far! I will see you all when I finish the next chapter! :)


	14. The Countdown: Last Moments

**Yaro Hailstien's POV – District 12 Male**

"Yaro, wake up!"

After a period of resistance, I got up from my bed and stretched, trying to wake myself up further. A few more seconds passed before I officially woke-up and became aware of where I was; standing out of my bed in front of Anya in the District Twelve living quarters.

"You know, one of these days I'll wake up from this nightmare and I'll be back in District Twelve. I'm just waiting for it." I spoke with a yawn. I continued to stretch a little bit in place to further wake myself up. "I'll find out my sister tried cooking again and gave me some weird chicken or something that put me into a coma from food poisoning. I'll wake up like two weeks later after having had the most vivid dream about the Capitol and participating in the Hunger Games."

"Yaro, you know that I like you, but can you not joke today? You know as well as I do what day it is today and we don't have the time." Anya scolded me.

"I'm not joking." I answered with a shrug.

The topic of today woke me up. I was no longer sleepy; instead, I felt really uncomfortable. Today was the big day after all. After a few days in luxury with Capitolian food and beds, it was now time to go into the Hunger Games and enter a fight-to-the-death with a bunch of other kids. It was a depressing thought alone. Adding the pressure of Keev's life if I were to die did not help me feel any better…

Anya frowned in response at my comment, but didn't acknowledge it. Instead, she simply walked towards the door to the hallway. "I'm going to wake up Emery. Yaro, you have an hour left to shower, to get dressed, and to eat breakfast."

"Understood." I sighed in response as I walked to the bathroom.

There was no delaying it; the Hunger Games were here. There were so many different emotions running through my head. I could feel myself trying to come up with some joke, something to just make me feel better. I _needed _something to laugh about to just feel even a little bit better, but nothing was coming to mind. The only thing I truly felt was the sick feeling in my stomach. Having to kill twenty-three other kids, having to face the possibility of my inevitable death, and having to deal with the burden of Keev's life on my shoulders was just so much. Once I was in the arena, I was just going to have to suck it up.

Unlike Emery and Kaylee, I really hadn't made peace with the idea of killing anyone. But, I wasn't stupid; if I wanted to get home alive, I was going to have to kill _at least_ one other person. As sick as the thought made me feel, it was something that I was going to need to do. Maybe I wouldn't fight for myself, but I was willing to do anything for Keev. He was my best friend: he was my brother. I didn't know if I deserved to live more than the other twenty-three tributes, but I knew that he definitely deserved to live! Therefore, I was going to fight for him… even if I became sick with myself after the aftermath of the Games…

With a heavy sigh, I took my clothes off, entered the shower, and turned the faucet on. It was time to get this whole Hunger Games experience over with already.

* * *

**Florina Everett's POV – District 11 Female**

"Florina, are you in there?" I heard Leaf ask me as he knocked on my door

"I'm fine! J-Just leave me alone!" I shouted out frantically between my sobs.

There was a sigh from the outside of the door before the sounds of footsteps could be heard. _Good._ I didn't want him, or anyone, to see me like this: cooped up in a corner in my room, crying my eyes out.

I hated being a crybaby. I hated the fact that I burst into tears at the reaping ceremony. I hated that I cried for the cameras at the Quarter Quell twist. And I hated how I would burst into tears whenever I thought about the Quarter Quell for too long and whenever I looked at my father. No matter how many times I tried to think on the bright side, nothing would stop me from crying. Right now, I was hysterical and nothing was going to fix this.

This wasn't fair at all! My father already had his life on the line in his own Hunger Games! Why… Why did this stupid Quarter Quell twist have to be a thing? Why was it that he was going to die if I died in the arena? I was not as tough or strong as he was. I wasn't Onyx Everett; I was just his crybaby, pathetic daughter Florina.

"Florina?" I heard my father's voice call out from outside my bedroom door.

Before I could tell him to leave me alone, he opened the door. My father took one look at me before he rushed over and forcefully pulled me up from my corner and into a hug. Immediately, my arms went around his shoulders and I laid my head against his neck. My tears started to fall against him.

"D-Dad, I'm scared… I-I'm not good enough to fight in the Hunger Games. I'm… I'm going to die. It m-may not be in the bloodbath, b-but it's going to happen eventually. And I'm going to g-get you… you… ki-" I couldn't even finish the sentence before my speech turned into nothing more than hysterical sobs. My grip on my father's shoulders tightened.

"… Did I look like a fighter when I was first reaped?" My father questioned as he returned my hug.

"Much, much, much more than me!" I shouted back in protest between my sobs. "You were older than me and bigger than me and tougher than me and smarter and… and…"

My father let me cry against him for a few seconds. I knew it was difficult for him; ever since mother took me away from him, he didn't know exactly what to say to me. Right now, he didn't know what to say to make me feel better. Really, I doubted he _could_ say anything to me. I was simply inconsolable!

After a few seconds, though, he pulled my head away from him. He looked me in the eye and I noticed that he, too, was crying.

_Oh Dad…_

"Florina… I haven't been happy since my own Hunger Games. You and your mom were the only bright moments in my life, and then that was all taken away when your mom and I…" My father shook his head, trying to block the memories. I understood. I remembered the fight between him and my mother that resulted in us leaving. It was one of the worst days of my life. "… I haven't been able to live properly without you two in my life. I can't. So… if this was just a normal Hunger Games and you died… it would be no different to me than what this Games would be. I don't think I could live if you were dead… hell, maybe that would've been the motivation to finally take my life…"

"Dad…" My tears started to roll down my eyes at a faster rate.

"Wh-What I'm trying to say is that you mean the world to me, and that if you were dead, it would feel like I was going to die anyway." My father told me. He quickly brushed the tears out from his eyes and then smiled at me. "So, don't be concerned about me and my life. Just fight for you. I know you can do it."

"But Dad, I can't!" I shook my head.

My father simply responded by putting his hand against my cheek and rubbing it affectionately, causing my head to stop shaking. He then moved his hand under my glasses and brushed the tears away from my eyes.

"You scored higher than over half of District Eleven's victors… Florina, I know you can do it. Just don't think or worry about me; think about only yourself. I know you can do it." He told me. "Can you do that?"

"… I'll try." I answered. My hands went to my eyes and tried to rub away the remaining tears.

I had no clue why my father had so much faith in me, but I knew he was smarter than me. He was definitely seeing some potential in me that I didn't. Therefore, I was going to take his word. I was going to fight and do everything I could for him. Even if I had to become a killer, I would do it… all for him!

_A father/daughter victor duo… Let's make it a thing Dad!_

* * *

**Logan Faber's POV – District 10 Male**

When I entered the dining room, both Jewel and Julian were sitting at the table talking to each other while they ate a plate of eggs for breakfast. As soon as they noticed my presence, their faces paled slightly. Their conversation ended as they watched me take an apple from a basket and start to eat at one of the seats at the other side of the table.

"How are you f-feeling Logan?" Jewel asked me, stuttering slightly.

I simply took a bite from my apple while I glared at her in response, causing her to shrink back in her seat. There was no reason for me to converse with her at all, thankfully. I had put up with her gossip and her useless bullshit these past few days for too long. Today was going to be the last day I had to tolerate her for too long and I was glad to simply get away from her. Once I came out of the Hunger Games, though, she was going to be the first chosen target amongst all of the Capitol citizens.

A few seconds of silence passed by and, after taking a few more bites of my apple, I turned my attention towards Julian.

"You remember what I told you, correct?" I spoke to him.

Julian's hands tensed slightly, but he had no other 'nervous' reaction. Instead, he simply nodded his head.

"Good. Remember that you can use any sponsor points that I received from my training score to help Maddison. Just make sure you send nothing to me." I reminded him.

"I… I heard you the first time we talked about this." Julian answered with a sigh. "I still don't understand you Logan. Sponsorships are life-saving in the arena."

"I don't need my life saved by some humans with a little extra money to spend. I can more than take care of myself on my own." I replied.

"You say that now, but that won't be the case in the arena Logan. It's not just twenty-three kids you're competing against. You'll be fighting the damn arena and the gamemakers themselves as they try and milk the most out of all the tributes." The mentor told me as he stabbed a piece of his eggs with his fork. "A kid like you, no matter how capable or trained you are, should not simply deny any possible help."

My eyes narrowed in response. I noticed that Julian was raising his fork, ready to take a bite of his eggs. Immediately, I tossed the remaining bit of my apple in my hands at the fork, knocking it out of his hands and onto the ground. The action took Julian by surprise and his eyes widened.

"I'm not normal and I know that you know that as well. If, somehow, you forgot, then just wait until the arena and I'll show you capable I am on my own." I hissed at him.

Julian shook his head as he stood up from his seat. "Whenever I try to help, you just reject me like that. You have a temper Logan and you seemingly can't control it. That will get you killed later."

"'A temper?' You think I'm angry?" I actually laughed in response. "You haven't seen me angry yet. Believe me, human, you don't want to see me angry."

Immediately, Jewel stood up from her chair. She rushed over to Julian and the two of them left the room entirely. I was now alone, thankfully. These next few hours were going to be my only down-time for the rest of my time in the Capitol. Now was going to be the only time I had left to simply think.

My whole life has been leading up to this one moment. Once I became a victor in the Hunger Games, I would get access to enter the Capitol. I could slowly learn how the city works and how their police and surveillance works. This knowledge would help me with my quest. I would use it and all of my skills to bring ruin across Panem. Before long, the Capitol would be soaked in the blood of its people, as will all of the districts.

I was born in this world to end the human species and restore life on this planet to the way it was meant to be centuries before humanity spawned from the earth. I've already killed multiple people throughout District Ten and I was very ready to kill more to complete my mission. What's another twenty-three brats to me? Their lives are nothing more than stepping stones to me as I march on my path to much more challenging, worthwhile kills in the near future.

_I hope the people in the Capitol are entertained by my killing in the arena._ It won't be long until I am crowned victor. Soon after, my killings will continue, and I know they will not enjoy _those_ kills when they happen, especially when it is their lives that I'll end.

* * *

**Demetriana "Demi" Walser's POV – District 9 Female **

"Demi, can you take this?"

I looked up from my pancake breakfast to see Einkorn sitting down on the other side of the dining table. He had a pill bottle in his hands. I looked at him suspiciously.

"What is that for?" I questioned.

"It's a pill that helps with withdrawal symptoms. You're probably not going to get any alcohol when you're in the arena, so you're probably going to need these pills." He answered with a chuckle.

Immediately, I shook my head. "I'm not an alcoholic."

"Yeah, right." Einkorn scoffed immediately. "I am, and you drink as much as I do. Demi, withdrawal symptoms are some serious shit. They _will_ kill you in the arena. These pills are going to be the first things we sponsor to you and they are what's going to keep you alive. Please, take them."

I could still feel myself resisting the idea. It didn't matter what he said, I wasn't an alcoholic. Sure, alcohol _did _help me forget things about my character and my past that still haunted me, but that was all I used it for. I didn't necessarily need it like an alcoholic! Still, despite my resistance, I found myself nodding at his request and taking the pill bottle. Einkorn was smarter than me. If he thought I needed to take these pills to survive, then I would. I kept telling myself that at least as I took one of the pills out of the bottle and swallowed it.

"What's your game plan for the bloodbath?" He questioned with a smile. "I know we talked a little about earlier, but now's crunch time. I'm sure you may have changed your mind on some things."

"Not really. It's still just grab a weapon and backpack, meet up with Jason, and get us both out as fast we can." I replied.

"And after the bloodbath?" He asked.

"I don't know. Does it matter though?" I questioned with a sigh. "It's the Hunger Games. Anything can happen. There's no point to plan too far ahead. Besides, I don't even know what kind of arena I'm getting thrown into." I let a humorless chuckle out as I grabbed my fork and stabbed the breakfast I had been ignoring. "Who knows what trap will be out there that will most likely kill me?"

It was stressful jumping head-first into the unknown, but there was nothing I could do. The only calming thought was that no one knew exactly what we were going into. There is not one person here who is prepared for every single trap, mutt, and twist the gamemakers have in store for us. It doesn't even matter how trained we are; all that mattered was how well you can adapt to the circumstances of the arena. I just hoped I was better than most of the other tributes in that regard…

A part of me wanted to go over to the refrigerator and take out a bottle of whiskey and drink what could very well be my last glass. However, I remained sitting and made no attempts to fetch a drink. Maybe the pill Einkorn gave me was already taking effect and I simply did not want a drink? Or maybe I was just feeling too anxious that I already knew alcohol wouldn't be enough to calm me down.

Instead of drinking, I simply returned to eating my breakfast. I tried to calm down my nerves and any depressing thoughts. They weren't going to get me out alive. I had to do anything and everything I could to make sure I lived for Kendra. I could hardly care less if I personally died or not. It would possibly be easier to just simply die… but I wasn't going to let my best friend die with me. We were both going to live and make it through this whole experience together!

_Somehow…_

* * *

**Xander Lugar's POV – District 8 Male **

"Ray?" I called to my mentor as I knocked on the door to his room.

The door quickly opened and I saw Ray looking staring at me nervously. The guy looked completely disheveled: his clothes were torn and his normally straight black hair was unkempt. His eyes were also read. It looked as if he went out drinking or something like that last night. Not like my life was on the line or anything…

"C-Can I help you Xander?" He asked with a slightly slurred speech.

"What's wrong with you?" I questioned with a glare.

Ray looked downward in response as he started to poke his two index fingers together. He remained quiet for a few seconds before he finally started to speak. "… I c-couldn't sleep at all. So I went out of the living quarters and got completely wasted with Einkorn from District Nine and the mentors from District Three."

"'Wasted?' 'Couldn't sleep?'" I repeated his words, irritation filling my tone-of-voice.

"Everything is just like it was last year… I c-can't not remember everything. My own Hunger Games are too memorable and the memories are coming back stronger and stronger with each day. It's just too much to handle!" He sobbed in response. "I need to forget… but I can't…"

Ray started to mumble to himself desperately. A part of me felt sympathy for him. I couldn't remember exactly what happened to him in his Games, even though they were just two years ago, but they had an immense impact on him and seemed to completely ruin his life and psyche. He had everything right to be upset. Having said that, I couldn't feel too much sympathy for him. Ray continuously wallowed in his own self-pity and, in the process, never did anything for me or Raven.

"You can get drunk later… I'm sure the bars will be open all the time during the Games." I replied neutrally, trying not to sound either too sympathetic or too hostile. "… But for now, I need you to do something for me."

I dug my left hand into the pocket of my shorts and pulled out a piece of paper. I then held out to Ray. The mentor stopped sobbing and looked at it with curious, tear-filled eyes.

"It's… a letter. For my grandfather." I answered his non-verbal question with a gulp. I looked towards the floor as I spoke in a quiet voice. "He could still live even if me and Amaya are dead. He just needs some reminder to keep on living. So… if I die, can you please go find him and give him that letter? And hopefully… it'll motivate him to try his hardest to keep living?"

"Do you think you're going to die? Do you really doubt yourself that badly Xander?" Ray asked.

"I think I stand a chance, but I'm trying to be a realist and I'm planning for the likely event of my death." I replied. My head turned upwards and, unable to hide my hostility any longer, glared at the mentor in front of me. "But I was never really mentored, so that's probably a major strike against me. Tonya already saw me as dead the second she saw me, and you did nothing to actually help me either. You just occasionally asked questions uneasily and offered lame, general advice that both Raven and I already knew."

A look of shock crossed Ray's face. In seconds, his eyes filled up with even more tears. It seemed as if he didn't realize exactly how horrible of a mentor he was. Perhaps I was being too harsh on him… but just as he had a right to feel as depressed as he did, did I not have a right to be angry about my circumstances and the fact that I'm probably going to die and get my sister killed with me?

"… You owe me this favor. I won't be mad at you for anything, even as I'm dying, as long as you promise me to get this to my grandfather. Please…" I pleaded to him in a softer tone-of-voice.

There was a brief moment of silence as Ray continued to sob to himself. Finally, after a full two minutes, the mentor wiped away his tears and took the paper away. He then put into the pocket of his own pants.

"I'll do it. As soon as I get back to District Eight if you…" He shook his head. "Your grandfather will be okay… I'll look after him for you if I need to."

For the first time since the morning of the reaping, before all of this mess happened, I was able to smile a true, pure smile of relief and happiness.

"Thank you Ray." I told him contently. At least I had one thing I didn't have to worry about in the Hunger Games. Now, I could just focus on myself and my own plans to get out.

* * *

**Winnie Goldstein's POV – District 7 Female **

"… It's so quiet today." Autumn noted as she looked around the room uneasily.

Usually during breakfast, the dining table was filled with conversation. Autumn and both District Seven mentors, Pine and Willow, were talkative people in general and Raegae was the type of guy to always have something obnoxious to say. Today, not even Raegae could come up with something to talk about. Everyone knew exactly how serious it was going to be. In just a few hours, we were all going to be in the arena, ready to fight to the death.

There was never a time where I forgot about how close the Games were to us. It was always some looming fact that I couldn't forget, no matter how hard I tried. Therefore, I was glad to see that everyone else was finally seeing it the way I was. The Games were here…

"You should know by now Autumn that not many people are in the best of moods to talk on the day of the Hunger Games. This is serious." Pine replied with a sigh as he stroked his greyish beard.

I turned to look over to Pine. It was always weird to look at him; he won the Hunger Games twenty-five years ago, but he was already in his early sixties. However, he wasn't in a normal Hunger Games. He was in the last Quarter Quell, where the twist removed the age limit. He volunteered when his fifteen year old son was reaped and managed to win the Hunger Games, using all of his experience and strength from chopping down trees in the lumberyards. Pine was more of an adult than anyone I had ever met. That should've made me distrust him, but there was something about him that drew me close to him. He reminded me a lot of Sherri… and my parents.

Regardless of what I felt about him, he was extremely wise and I spent all the time I could listening to all of his advice. All I could hope for was that I could follow everything he said perfectly to get out of the arena alive.

"I understand Pine, but it's just…" Autumn sighed in response. She then turned her head towards me and Raegae. "I don't know. It's potentially the last moments in comfort for you two. Do you really want to spend them being all mopey?"

"Oh, do we depress you or something by not being that talkative? You wish we would just be all joyful and shit despite us knowing that this could be our last day alive and that we could be getting our brothers killed with us? Yeah, I bet you have some real hard problems right now, dealing with a couple of 'mopey' kids." Raegae spoke in an angry, condescending voice. "Go fuck yourself Autumn."

Autumn's eyes widened in complete surprise at Raegae's words. He had always been so flirty and 'smooth' with her that she probably never expected to see this side of his directed at her. I was actually surprised that he said something like to her as well. For the first time since I met him, I was able to look at Raegae with some respect. Underneath all of his rudeness, he too realized just how unfair this whole thing was…

"Th-That's not what I meant-" She started to speak.

"He has a point." I answered.

All eyes went towards me. It was rare for me to speak up. I was seen as this quiet, innocent, fragile little girl ever since the day I was reaped. They, in particular Autumn, couldn't imagine me going on a rant… but then again, she never actually knew me to begin with.

"This is a serious day for us. There's a good chance I could die and Marv will die with me. The same thing with Raegae and his brother. We don't want to just talk peacefully. We want to just take some time and think to ourselves. Maybe we are thinking about arena plans or maybe just about this messed up situation. Whatever it is, don't try and accuse us of being mopey. Even if we are, we have every right to be!" I told her coldly.

I was prepared to continue my rant, but the rest of my words died in my throat as the door to the District Seven living quarters opened up and three peacekeepers walked in…

* * *

**Booker Comston's POV – District 6 Male**

"We are here for Booker Comston and Alexandra Varas. We are to escort them to their final preparations and the arena." One of the peacekeepers spoke in an authoritative voice to everyone in the living room.

Lunar nodded in understanding as he started to walk away towards the bedrooms. "As you can see, Booker is already here. I'll go fetch Alexandra for you all."

The three peacekeepers nodded as they watched Lunar head down the hallway to get Alexandra. One of them remained looking, but the other two turned their eyes towards me. I simply did nothing but stare back, studying all three peacekeepers in front of me.

Ever since I arrived in the Capitol, I started to compare the mannerisms, actions, and attitudes of the peacekeepers here with the ones back in District Six. It always annoyed me to hear the complaints of the average district civilian about the peacekeepers, but I now realized that some of the complaints were actually valid critiques of the Capitolian peacekeepers. Back in District Six, my father and his fellow co-workers were simply doing what they were told to do to provide peace and justice to a lawless environment. I have met most of the entire force and I knew that roughly ninety percent of them were caring people who would never abuse the system of the government or anything. Here in the Capitol, I would reverse that statistic; ninety percent of the peacekeepers here appeared to be the stereotypical strict, uncaring, and potentially corrupt people that the district civilians based their stereotypes.

This made me concerned about the number of crimes in the Capitol. There needs to be a change in the management here…

My thoughts about Capitol crime stopped as Lunar and Alexandra entered the room. She looked slightly irritated at the sight of the peacekeepers, but made no comment. She simply stood next to me and stared at them, waiting.

"We are leaving now. Follow us." One of the peacekeepers stated.

Both Alexandra and I nodded as we followed them out of the living quarters.

There was no conversation as we walked down hallways heading towards our destination. The peacekeepers here didn't seem the type to tolerate meaningless conversation and Alexandra and I did not have the relationship where we would actually _want_ to have such a conversation. We all spent the time thinking to ourselves.

My eyes briefly focused on Alexandra. The next time I saw her, I was going to try and kill her. I doubt it would be in the bloodbath: she was too quick. There was no way I would reach her in time with a weapon to kill her amongst the chaos. Afterwards, however, I was going to hunt her down. She and Logan would both die by my hands and receive the proper punishment they deserved… the punishment that they almost avoided by entering the Hunger Games. For now, though, my primary focus was going to be on getting out of the bloodbath alive with Florina.

A brief smile crossed my lips as I thought about the girl from District Eleven. It was amusing to me that I actually had someone willing to work with me on my mission. I never had that luxury back in District Six, so it was something unique to me. However, the arena was going to be unknown territory. Florina's partnership was going to more than unique and comforting; there was a good chance it could also be a necessity.

* * *

**Stephanie Volk's POV – District 5 Female**

For the first few minutes after the peacekeepers picked us up, there was no conversation whatsoever. Awkwardness and silence filled the air with each step we took. It was an almost suffocating feeling to me. Icarus, too, seemed to be experiencing the same feelings as me. After a while, though, Icarus sighed and decided to break the silence.

"Do you care if we talk?" He asked.

One of the peacekeepers shrugged in response before speaking. "I don't give a fuck. Just know we're listening to everything you say, even if it looks like we aren't."

Icarus nodded in understanding. He then turned to face me and smiled. I returned his smile, relieved to have someone to talk to now and get out of this silence.

"You're ready, right?" He questioned me.

"As ready as I will ever be." I replied with a sigh. Even with all the preparation during the training sessions and on our own times, how could someone actually be truly ready for the Hunger Games? There were very few things that could actually be predicted within the Games. It was truly a random competition and that made me absolutely terrified. "Are you?"

"Same. I'm just anxious to get this thing started." Icarus sighed in response.

Icarus did appear to look stressed, which was a surprise. Usually he was so calm, collected, and emotionless with how he carried himself. To be completely honest, I probably looked a little calmer than him right now! I couldn't help but stare at him in curiosity, wondering what he was thinking about. I opened my mouth to ask him about it, but he then cut me off with another question.

"You remember the plan right?" He asked.

"Yeah. We'll get our own individual supplies for our plans. And then we'll meet up with Ethan and get out." I answered immediately.

"Remember if Ethan or I die in the bloodbath, don't react. Just get away from the bloodbath. I'm going to do the same, and if Ethan has any form of common sense, he'd do the same." Icarus stated sharply. "Also, if I do die, do not mourn for me. Such an attitude will only get you killed."

"Easier said than done." I replied with a frown.

There was no doubt in my mind that if I died, Icarus wouldn't think twice and would move on. I doubt I would be able to do that. Despite my better judgment, I had become close to him and Ethan. Imagining either of them dead was terrifying. I don't know how I would react at all…

Then again, if I had any intentions of getting out of the arena alive, both Icarus and Ethan were going to have to die at some point.

Icarus and I stopped talking and simply marched the rest of the way in silence. The entire way, all I could truly think about was my older brother and how much I wished he was here to help calm me down before I enter the arena…

* * *

**Cascade Bolt's POV – District 4 Male**

After probably walking for nearly ten minutes through generic hallways, the peacekeepers finally stopped walking as we reached a large, steel door. There was a number pad on the wall next to the door. One of the peacekeepers walked over to the pad while one of the other peacekeepers grabbed a radio from his pocket and pressed a button.

"District Four tributes have reached the hanger. We will board the hovercraft and arrive on location at 0900." He reported into the radio.

I knew he wasn't talking to me, but I still nodded in understanding. It wasn't going to be long before we were at the arena location. Soon, the Hunger Games would begin and it would be time to fight.

Strangely, I wasn't too nervous about the actual fighting. This wouldn't be my first fight with kids and I knew that I was capable in a fight. Furthermore, I was in the Career Pack. Fighting and the fear of dying in the bloodbath wasn't a top concern of mine.

Instead, I was anxious about actually killing some of the other tributes. I've beaten up any piece of shit that ever picked a fight with me back in District Four, but I've only done just that; I've never actually killed someone before. It never felt right to ever go that far. Now, I wasn't going to have a choice. I was going to have to end the lives of the competition… sooner than later too. I wasn't a volunteer, so I was already looked at negatively by my allies. They were going to look to me and see if I wasn't going to hold them back. I had to show them what I was capable of doing. Therefore, I _was_ going to have to make at least one kill in the bloodbath…

My eyes gravitated towards Alaska. She also wasn't a volunteer, so she was in the same boat as me; she was going to have to prove herself as well to the other careers.

"Do you know who you are going to try and go after?" I asked quietly.

Alaska shrugged in response. "I don't know, nor do I really care. First person I notice after I get a weapon I guess." She then turned to look at me with a curious look in her eyes. "Do you actually have a planned target?"

"No, no." I shook my head. "I was just curious about what you were thinking. I guess you and I are on the same wavelength."

"You don't seem as confident as you usually are. Feeling nervous?" Alaska questioned. I could tell she intended for her question to come across as condescending, but I did notice a slight sense of concern in her voice. Was she actually concerned about me? … _Probably not._ She was most likely worried that I wouldn't be able to hold my own in the Career Pack.

"Not nervous. I'm ready!" I answered her as I cracked my knuckles in response.

I was telling the truth. Nervousness wasn't what I was feeling. I really didn't know exactly what it was. However, whatever this emotion was, it wasn't going to hold me back in the arena. I had to kill no matter what. Dylan's life was on the line and that's all that matters. All I could do was fight and kill and just hope I'd be able to feel good about all of this sometime later in the future!

_At least I hope I will be able to…_

Alaska looked as if she was about to say something, but she was cut off at the sound of a door being unlocked. We turned our attention back to the door. The peacekeeper at the number pad had just entered a password and the steel door was now wide open. The three peacekeepers walked in. Not wanting to be left behind, Alaska and I followed and entered the room. Immediately after, we both looked at the giant object in front of us and gaped at the sight…

"Damn…" I couldn't help but mumble.

* * *

**Kaylee Harper's POV – District 3 Female **

I would never consider myself the stereotypical person from District Three. I didn't think of myself as particularly intelligent, so machinery and technology just never seemed like practical interests to me. Still, I couldn't help but look at the giant hovercraft in front of me and be impressed.

The hovercraft looked like something out of a book. It was made of pure iron and metal and looked very durable. There were many tiles scattered across the body of the hovercraft and its wings. The windows were nearly see-through; it took me a few seconds to even realize they were windows! It was an absolutely incredible sight to see. It was still strange to see just how much more advanced Capitolian technology was compared to the technology of the Districts.

It took a few seconds before the 'amazed' feeling went away. My thoughts focused, once again, on the impending Games. After all, the only reason I was even around the hovercraft was to board it and be escorted to the arena: not to gawk at it like some mindless sheep.

"This is superb!" Ethan exclaimed loudly with a wide grin on his face, his eyes focused intently on the wings of the hovercraft. Apparently, he was unable to lose the fascination with the hovercraft. "How exactly do the Capitol scientists craft such fine aviation machines? This goes beyond the possibilities at all the factories in District Three!"

I shook my head, resisting the urge to tell the boy 'no shit'. The Capitol would never allow District Three to have the resources to produce something of this quality. They would never risk it in case if the Districts decided to revolt again. However, I couldn't say that to Ethan. For the first time all day, he actually looked excitable and happy again. It was a relief to see him in any other mood other than 'moody' and 'depressed'… especially considering this was very realistically the last time I could see him. I wouldn't go after him, but there was definitely a very strong chance that someone would kill the boy in the bloodbath.

That was probably a good thing for me. Other than Ethan and maybe Yaro to a loose degree, I didn't consider myself close to anyone. They were nothing more than obstacles, keeping me away from returning home. Therefore, I would be able to fight them and kill them with no guilt!

… _Or at least, as little guilt as possible._ I don't know if it would be guilt exactly, but I had a feeling I wasn't going to be in the best of mood when I saw Ethan's face in the sky after he dies…

"You two: hurry up. We're on a tight schedule." One of the peacekeepers hissed.

Both Ethan and I nodded as we quickly walked up to the front of the hovercraft. We walked right underneath it towards a ladder attached to it that led to an open door at the top.

"Start climbing. Ladies first I guess." One of the peacekeepers stated sharply as he glared at me.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." I rolled my eyes as I started to climb the hovercraft's ladder. I didn't like his tone-of-voice and I wanted to fire back at him, but I resisted the urge. It made little sense to antagonize one of the peacekeepers now just before entering the Games. I didn't want to risk angering someone who had connections to the gamemakers or the government that could guarantee me getting killed, after all…

Instead, I focused on Harper as I climbed the ladder. I'm sure he's going through hell right now back in District Three. He got outed as my 'lover' on live television, and I know a place like District Three would not take an affair positively. At the very least, I'm sure my parents and Renton are pissed at him…

I had to make it back home. There were so many problems and complications in my personal life that I haven't resolved yet. I had to fix my relationship with my family and I needed to resolve the issue with Harper and Renton. I was by no means a good person and I probably didn't deserve to come out of the arena live. However, there were so many wrongs I needed to right in my personal life. If there was a god out there, maybe he would take pity on me just this once and give me the chance to return home and correct my mistakes…

* * *

**Lepolio Huang's POV – District 2 Male**

Victoire and I boarded the hovercraft as quickly as we arrived. We then took our own seats. The peacekeepers followed up the ladder and entered as well. They then started to strap us in.

"Whoa… little tight there." Victoire commented lightly as one of the peacekeepers forced another seatbelt on her.

"My apologies, ma'am, but we're just ensuring you're not going to try get out of your seat midflight or something. Could be dangerous for you." The peacekeeper told her with a shrug.

After Victoire and I were strapped in tightly, one of the peacekeepers took out two different syringes. He tossed them to the other two peacekeepers, who quickly injected them into our arms. At first, I gave him a confused look as I tried to figure out what exactly he was putting inside me. Then, I noticed Victoire wince slightly in pain, making me believe that the syringe was _supposed_ to be painful. I quickly bit my lip and tried to appear like I was trying to hide 'my pain'.

"The trackers were injected." One of the peacekeepers reported on a radio.

_Oh. The trackers._ I was wondering when we were going to receive those. Interesting. If only the tracking device wasn't injected into the bloodstream. If it was something placed on our clothes, I could find some way to hack into it and use it to locate the other tributes. That would make the actual Hunger Games more convenient for me.

"Copy that. Both District Two tributes are registered on our system." A voice replied on the other side of the radio. It was most likely one of the gamemakers.

"Ten four." The peacekeeper replied as he ended the radio transmission. He then turned to face us. "The hovercraft will be taking off in a few minutes."

"Understood." I replied compliantly.

Personally, I was ready for all of these useless protocols to end already. I was ready to enter the arena and begin the Hunger Games. It had been a little longer than a week since I saw my family, and I did not enjoy being away from them for so long. I was going to have to win the Games fast so I could get back to them. If I remained focused on my goal, I could most likely finish the Hunger Games in about five days.

When the Games started, I was going to begin the hunt immediately. I'd grab two swords in the cornucopia and would hunt down as many tributes as I could. I would make an effort to prioritize high-scoring tributes first, however. Icarus, Alexandra, Booker, Maddison, Logan… it was imperative to remove these threats as early as I could.

Instinctively, my fingers wandered to the golden ring on my left index finger. There was a switch on it that opened up a small compartment. Inside of it were two pictures: the first was of me, my parents, and my brother; the second was of me, Kianna, and our children. My fingers rubbed over the image of my son, Miall…

Very few things mattered to me. My family was the only thing I could care about. The Quarter Quell twist put the life of Miall at risk. For my son, I was ready to do anything. I could care less what the Capitol thought of me after the Games. All that mattered was that I got home and kept him safe.

The Capitol wanted a show. For my son, I was ready to give them a full-out massacre. By the time I was done, the other tributes were going to be little more than pieces of flesh and blood, and I was going to feel no guilt whatsoever.

* * *

**Kendra Perone's POV – District 1 Female**

A minute passed after boarding the hovercraft. The machine finally started to rise into the air. The ceiling in the room we were in opened up, revealing a bright, blue sky. The hovercraft then started to fly out of the opening at a very fast rate, getting us out of the training center and on the way towards the arena.

_Finally._ There were only so many fake conversations with Royal I could have and books I could read. I needed something a little more invigorating to keep me entertained. I knew the Games would be able to provide that entertainment. One of the main reasons I volunteered was for the adventure, and I was very excited to see exactly what the arena was like and how the Games were going to unfold.

With that in mind, I looked over to the left. I was sitting in a seat by one of the windows of the hovercraft, so I was able to look out into the sky. My eyes widened as I looked down and saw an overview of the Capitol. The city looked so big from the train and from the brief glimpses I had seen over the week and on the television. Seeing it from this height made it look so small and insignificant. It probably looked no different than the Districts from the sky.

It didn't take long before I realized that I liked this feeling of flying and being in the sky. After I won the Games, I wanted to experience this feeling again.

"Are you ready Kendra?"

_If only I was alone to actually enjoy this. _With a sigh, I turned my head and faced Ariail, who was studying me intently.

"If I wasn't, I would have never volunteered. I was ready before we even came out here." I answered dismissively.

Ariail scowled in response before he responded. "Get as many kills as you can in the bloodbath. We want to show the audience our strength early. We have a legacy to uphold after all."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I'll get a couple of good kills. Don't worry." I rolled my eyes in response.

There was a part of me that wanted not to kill a single person in the bloodbath just to spite Ariail and his leadership, but I realized that would not be practical. I had my fun screwing around with him; now was the time to be serious. I had a few people that I was considering going after and I was going to make sure at least one or two of them died by my axe.

Matthias and Zelena were going to be watching me. Both of them were not going to be worried about me. Not even Zelena, despite the Quarter Quell, would be afraid for me. They knew exactly how capable I was. They knew that nothing was going to stop me from coming back home.

That's exactly what I was going to do. That's all I knew that was going to happen at least. There was not a single doubt in my mind that I was going to win. Hopefully after I win the Games, however, I'll have some sense of purpose of what to do with my life after. I was honestly sick of the same stupid day-to-day routine back at home. The Games will be exciting and all I can hope for was that life as a victor would be just as equally exciting.

* * *

**Ariail Bardineux's POV – District 1 Male**

I cracked my knuckles as I looked out the window of the hovercraft impatiently, waiting for it to land already. How far away was the actual arena from the training center anyway? Why couldn't it just be nearby the damn place? That would make logical sense, but I've come to realize that not a single person in the Capitol were logical. They operated on their own wavelength and thought in ways no one else could understand. After all, this whole thing was just some game to them. They were probably the biggest examples of worthless human lives.

The wait today was driving me insane. I barely got any sleep last night and the day itself was dragging on for what felt like forever. All I wanted was to get thrown into the arena already. Seriously! I was getting extremely impatient for the Games to start and for me to make my first kill.

I wouldn't really consider myself too bloodthirsty like most guys from District One. I was much more sophisticated and intelligent than the average kill-hungry mongrels my district produced. However, even I could feel an adrenaline rush sweep over me as the time to enter the arena came closer. There was an excitement that went through my body and I was more than ready to release it in the bloodbath. I was always willing and ready to experience something new just for the thrill of it and killing was going to be no exception!

_How many kills would I be able to make?_ I brought my right hand to my head as I pondered that question. I was aiming to make at least two. Hopefully three or four, if I was lucky and the other tributes were abnormally slow. I wasn't interested in putting on a show for the Capitol, but I did want to make sure I was a well-decorated victor that had many kills under my name. If I could leave the Games with eight different kills, I would be satisfied my work. That felt like a reasonable accomplishment to me, at least.

More than getting kills, though, the priority was to enjoy the experience of the Hunger Games and stay alive. Perhaps I was willing to play the arena more aggressively when I first entered the Hunger Games and maybe I was even willing to die just to make a name for myself out there, but not after that damn Quarter Quell twist announcement…

_Amorette…_

I wondered what she was thinking right now. I know she's strong and independent, but even she has to be scared shitless. After all, her fate and the fate of her child are in my hands and I've never been considered the most reliable person in District One. I've already let her down, so she's probably expecting to be let down a second time and to suffer the consequences of being connected to me.

Well, she's wrong. If there's one thing I am, it's that I'm the kind of guy who knows what I want and gets it. I'll be back in District One and there is nothing anyone can do to stop that. If anything, they'll only encourage me to work harder to get out alive.

One of the peacekeepers that escorted us into the hovercraft pulled out a radio and pressed a button it before speaking: "District One will be arriving shortly. Everything is on schedule and they will be escorted to position immediately."

_Damn right we will._

* * *

**Victoire McBlock's POV – District 2 Female**

The hovercraft began to slowly descend. A part of me actually felt slightly disappointed. The feeling of flying and being in the air was something new to me and it was absolutely exhilarating: to the point that I was actually starting to hope that the arena was going to be a sky based arena.

Nevertheless, all good things have to end at some point. The ground was starting to become closer and closer. Soon, I would fine my way in the middle of the Hunger Games arena and the bloodbath would begin soon after…

A frown crept onto my face. I never enjoyed the bloodbath. All the kills were too fast-paced and a lot of the tributes didn't have a chance to pick up their weapons and fight. They simply died. Those weren't the type of kills I wanted to get. I wanted to get mine through actual fighting. A lot of my competition were put in this against the will, so the least they deserved was a chance to fight for themselves.

Not like I was going to roll over and let them kill me, however. I had too many aspirations for my life outside of the Hunger Games to die here. Besides, I had to fight for Cameron. I couldn't die here, knowing that my death would get my younger brother killed too.

"Victoire?"

I turned my head and faced Lepolio. He was studying me intently with a serious expression on his face: the same expression I became so used to seeing ever since the Quarter Quell announcement.

"Yes?" I asked him.

"Once we land, we will be escorted away. You're rather caring for a girl from District Two, so I wanted to tell you this before we got separated and before we enter the arena: don't worry about me or the other careers in the bloodbath. We'll all survive and meet up afterwards. Just focus on getting as many kills as you can. Target whoever you want. Just make sure that as many people in our competition die." He stated.

His tone-of-voice took me by surprise. It was filled with so much determination, yet also filled with such a lack of emotion and care. Lepolio was always a quiet guy, but I always took him as polite and friendly whenever we did talk. Right now, he did resemble the boy I had met on the train. Right now, he resembled the most focused and deadly of career-trained males in District Two.

"Understood." I nodded in response.

Kills in the bloodbath weren't what I was hoping to do, but if I had to make one, I would. I would try to make them as painless as I could, but if they had to happen, then they would. I had to show the rest of the Career Pack and the Capital citizens that I was ready and willing to fight. This is what I have been training for so many years and I wasn't going to let all that time spent dreaming, preparing, and training go to waste!

_Watch me Cameron. I got this!_

It didn't take much longer before the hovercraft finally landed on solid ground.

* * *

**Ethan Neurus's POV – District 3 Male**

"You two: off the hovercraft now!" One of the peacekeepers shouted at Kaylee and me.

The two of us nodded obediently before we went down the ladder outside the door that we used to get on board. Kaylee went first while I followed behind. As I made my own descent downward, I looked outward and saw the new building I would be entering. I looked at in astonishment.

On the outside, the building was extremely large and bland-looking. It appeared like an office building of some sorts and seemed forgettable. It was anything but. Inside, there was going to be some device that teleported me and the rest of the tributes into a soon-to-be battle-torn environment. It was strange to look at this bland building, knowing that it was most likely going to be the location where I pass on into the next life.

Immediately, I shook my head. Stephanie and my mentors had told me to start thinking more positively, and I really needed to try. Things weren't as hopeless as I thought they were. I had two great allies – one of whom scored a ten – and I had the blueprints for a plan that would be remembered for years in the Hunger Games. If I could pull off my plans, then I stood a very reasonable chance to win. These were all facts that I knew.

Then again, I also knew facts that contradicted these. I was physically weak and scored a two in training. Furthermore, I was no stranger to failure. My mother was always quick to inform me of all my faults and everything I did wrong back in District Three. She saw me as little more than a leech. To be honest, if it wasn't for the Quarter Quell twist linking my life to my father's, I would believe that she'd be excited to see me die. At the very least, she wouldn't miss me. Not many people would.

"Kid! Hurry up already!" One of the peacekeepers called out.

Immediately, I realized I had stopped my descent on the ladder. I quickly bowed my head in apologies as I started to go downward again. A few seconds passed before I was on the ground, standing next to Kaylee.

"We're going to take you both to your stylists one last time." The peacekeepers informed us.

With those words, the peacekeepers started to separate. One of them signaled for Kaylee to follow him and another signaled for me to follow him. It was now time to go off alone into the last preparation.

"Ethan!" Kaylee called to me before we started to walk off. I turned to face her. She gave me a thumbs up and had a very slight smile on her face. "I'm going to do all I can to win, but don't die too early, okay? A kid like you doesn't deserve to be a bloodbath."

"… heh. I will do everything in my power to avoid such a fate." I replied with a similar smile. "And I wish a similar fate for you."

We were not allies and we both were realistic: only one of us would make it out alive. But like Kaylee did for me, I was wishing for the best for her as well. Hopefully she would join up with her allies and make it out of the bloodbath alright. Likewise, hopefully I would.

"Let's not waste any more time! Let's go!" The peacekeeper hissed at me.

With another nod, I started to follow him into the building. There were so many preparations that needed to be done. All I could hope for was that they wouldn't be in vain.

* * *

**Alaska Dayte's POV – District 4 Female**

The walk into the building was even more quiet and uncomfortable since Cascade left. The two of us were not close at all, but it was always comforting to be around him. All that was with me was a silent peacekeeper, and his presence didn't mean a single thing to me. He felt more like a threat that could potentially kill me, like an arena trap.

This was going to be what the actual Hunger Games was going to feel like. I was going to be alone with no allies. It was just going to be me versus the world. It was an intimidating thought – now more than ever – but it wasn't something I could be too concerned about. I've been training my ass off these past few days and I knew had the skills to survive. I just had to put them to use and, well, _survive!_

With that in mind, I spent my time looking around the hallways of the 'arena building'. It was starting to really bother me. Each room was plain looking with absolutely to study or look at. Looking at these rooms got me slightly concerned about the arena. I realized that it was going to look nothing like these plain rooms, but I was hoping that it was going to be more open. Enclosed areas, like these rooms, were not ideal for me…

What even were my hopes for the arena? Maybe one of the stereotypical forest-like arenas? That would be very ideal. I could hide up in trees with nets that I could make and then use them to capture any tribute that comes by my hiding spot. I guess all that I needed was any type of environment with high ground that I could climb up to. Just don't let the arena be enclosed or low to the ground… or have too much water.

I pushed the thoughts of water out of my head. I had a phobia of the deep water since the day my parents passed away on their fishing boat. I realized that and I didn't want to think about the topic too much. It would only depress and scare me. If it was an aquatic arena… then so be it. I would have to get over the fear as fast as I could. The life of Oanou was in my hands and nothing, not even my own fears, was going to stop me from keeping him alive!

"And here we are." The peacekeeper spoke up, interrupting my thoughts.

I looked forward and noticed that the two of us were approaching a large, silver door at the end of the hallway. We continued to walk closer to it before the peacekeeper stopped walking.

"This is where I stop. Your stylist is on the other side and she will assist with the last stages of preparations." He informed me.

"How many more procedures are there?" I rolled my eyes in response. All the Capitol protocol was really getting on my nerves. The system they had to kill twenty-three innocent children shouldn't be this complicated!

Then again, this system shouldn't even exist in the first place…

"You're almost done with them. Don't worry; the Games will start soon and you can kill to your hearts content in the arena." The peacekeeper noted with a chuckle.

A scowl developed on my face as I turned away from him to face the door. I wasn't interested in becoming a murderer. I didn't like the idea of killing other kids. However, I didn't want any harm to happen to my little brother. Therefore, I was ready to do whatever it took to keep him safe. If that meant killing, then I'd do it. I'd be the career tribute the Capital so desperately wants. I'd kill everyone here and send them straight down to hell if it meant Oanou was going to be okay.

I walked forward and opened the door to the room, thinking of Oanou as I entered the room to get these 'last stages of preparation' out of the way.

* * *

**Icarus Bolt's POV – District 5 Male**

"Ah, Icarus. Nice to see you." Janna, my stylist, greeted with me a smile.

"Nice to see you too." I mumbled half-heartedly in response.

Janna was rather nice, normal, and intelligent when compared to the other Capital citizens I had met. She was actually rather fun to talk to before the Tribute Parade. However, I was not necessarily in the mood to discuss anything with her and talk about scientific phenomena with her like last time. My mind was busy calculating plans and running through different possible scenarios of the arena.

"You seem preoccupied." She noted, catching on to my head.

"I suppose. Just thinking about the Games." I answered with a sigh.

"Finally worrying about them? You always seemed so calm talking about them before; I would've thought you were a career who didn't fear anything!" She joked in response.

A frown crept on to my face. Did it really surprise everyone when I showed any hint of emotion or something? These 'emotionless' rumors were starting to piss me off. It was not that I didn't feel anything; I have been trying to keep my thoughts and my mind in check these past few days to prevent myself from going insane before I entered the arena! Was that really that bad?

Unfortunately for me, I haven't been able to keep my emotions in check that easily today. I was irritable today and I was nervous: for my life and for Tallie's life.

_Dammit Dad._ I couldn't help but curse his name. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have had to volunteer and Tallie wouldn't have her life on the line. He fucked the two of us over so badly, thanks to his cowardice…

Then again, it was partially my thought. I should have listened to him when we were trying to flee the district. If I wasn't so reckless then, this whole situation could have been avoided as well. Hell, if I didn't do that, then I wouldn't have had to see the side of my father that I've grown to despise. He would still be the great electrician I idolized my whole life. Life would have been so easy if I wasn't so _fucking_ stupid back then.

This was all my fault as well. And now, I had to somehow find a way to make up for it and get out of here alive.

"Icarus?" I heard Janna say my name.

"Yes? Sorry?" I turned to face her.

"Did you even hear anything I said? Man, you really are out of it today." She noted with another chuckle. Her face then took a more serious demeanor. "… Are you okay?"

"Right now… not really." I answered honestly with a sigh. "I'll be okay though once I get out of the arena."

Realistically speaking, I did stand a great chance of making it out of the arena. I earned a ten in training and I was going to be skilled in fighting and in survival skills. Plus, I had Stephanie and Ethan on my side, and the two of them had some plan that would be beneficial to our alliance if they could pull it off. There were a lot of positives in my favor that increase my chance of victory. I just needed to take control of my negative variables: my emotions and my own recklessness. If I could do that, which I have been able to do up until today perfectly, then I will be able to win.

I can let myself stress out finally right here and release all of this bad energy that I've been storing in my body this whole time. Once I enter the arena, I have to be calm like I have been. I need to act rationally. I need to think rationally.

"… Well, then let's guarantee you your victory." Janna stated confidently. "Are you ready, then, to get preparations out of the way?"

"Yup." I replied with a nod. "What do have left to do?"

* * *

**Alexandra Varas's POV – District 6 Female**

"All that's really left to do is for you to put on the tribute uniform." Olaf, my stylist, told me as he took to a closet in the room. He then opened the doors of the closet, revealing to me a mannequin wearing my outfit.

I studied the uniform intently. It seemed rather plain, in my honest opinion. It was a white long-sleeve shirt and pants with black running shoes and a pair of black gloves. The shirt and pants looked skintight and were designed, from the looks of it, not to restrict body movement at all. The one thing that did stand out, however, was a small golden headband on the top of the mannequin's head. It resembled what the girl from District Nine, Demetriana, wore during her interview.

During her interview, Demetriana was asked about the headband and said that it helped connect to her namesake: a goddess of an ancient religion from a foreign land. My mind tried to remember everything she said about the topic. Perhaps there was a hint in it that could clue me in to what the arena was going to be like?

"You good Alex? You're zoning out." Olaf commented, waving his hand in front of my face.

"Sorry. I was just thinking about something." I replied nonchalantly. I then glared as I registered exactly what he said. "And for the last time, don't call me that. My name's Alexandra."

"Yeah, yeah. I heard you. I just don't like it, because it's a mouthful." He replied with a shrug.

"That's a matter of opinion." I rolled my eyes.

"Anyways, let's get back to business. Can you put on the uniform?" He requested with a grin on his face.

"… Can I put it on in the closet?" I requested.

I wasn't one to be self-cautious about my body, but I had noticed the way Olaf looked at me when he thought I wasn't looking. It disturbed me slightly and I did not want him seeing me undressed again after the damn stylist prep before the chariots.

Olaf's grin faded, but he nodded and let me enter the closet alone. I quickly took the clothes off the mannequin, took off my own clothes, and put on the new uniform. As I predicted, the clothes were tight on me, but they didn't feel restricting whatsoever. They wouldn't be a hindrance and I would be able to run around easily in them. They almost reminded me of the clothes I would wear during one of my heists in District Six… only more visible.

Perhaps I was being a little over-confident, but I was feeling comfortable in my chances for the arena. I felt there was a very good chance I would be the winner if I played my cards right. It was all a matter of playing them, however.

Although it was for the survival of my family, thievery trained me in all the skills I needed to survive in the arena. I learned everything I could in training and, thanks to Booker, I believe I had a story that would force the gamemakers to keep me alive until it was resolved, at least. I had many variables set up that would help me get out of the arena alive. I had to make sure that I didn't waste any of them.

I lightly chuckled as I walked out of the closet. I was thinking about my mother and how she was most likely worrying to death about me: not about herself. All of her worries were going to be in vain. Nothing was going to happen to me, or her for that matter. If there was one thing I knew I was good at, it was surviving. There wasn't a damn thing that was going to kill me in the arena.

* * *

**Raegae Oak's POV – District 7 Male**

"How do I look? Badass?" I asked my stylist, Shen.

"I suppose. You look sufficient." He replied with the same bored tone-of-voice he always had.

"More than 'sufficient'. I look like a victor!" I exclaimed as I flexed my muscles. The shirt was skintight, so my muscles showed _very_ nicely. There was no doubt that the women watching me in the arena were going to be drooling. I could already imagine all the babes that'll be all over me once I win the Games.

The outfit was probably the best part about today so far. Otherwise, it's been pretty damn shitty. Autumn was acting like a dumbass during breakfast and the mentors were as useless as always. The hovercraft was kinda cool, but it wasn't very long and the peacekeepers have all been dicks today. And, quite frankly, it was only going to get shittier once the Games actually started.

No matter what others thought of me, I wasn't a dumbass. I'm much more observant than people think and I knew exactly how people saw me. They saw me as this big idiot who spoke before he thought; someone who always pissed others off. I had a shit image and I was fucking sick of it. I was more than ready to show everyone who I really am and what I'm actually capable of.

I wasn't some play-toy to the Capital. They could have their fun and kill other kids; I couldn't give a shit. I'd mind my own business and have fun my way while they did whatever they want to twenty-four other little shits. This year, though, they decided to fuck with me. And then, they decided to fuck with me harder with the Quarter Quell twist and putting Sycamore at risk with me. If there was one thing people need to know about me, it's that I don't appreciate being screwed with. I'm the kind of person who likes to get even. Fuck with me? I'll fuck with you ten times harder.

I won't be a popular winner, but whatever. I'll win the Hunger Games and become a victor and I'll stick my middle finger up loud and proud towards anyone who ever doubted me.

"It's time to continue. The Games are about to start soon." Shen informed me.

"Hell yeah! Bring them on!" I exclaimed, pounding my left fist into my right hand's open palm.

Shen rolled his eyes in response, but started to walk off. "Follow me."

"Where we going now?" I asked with a sigh. After my inner monologue and getting myself pumped up, the last thing I wanted to do was walk through more boring hallways for another ten minutes.

"To the entrance to the Hunger Games. It's just one room over." My stylist replied with a shrug. "Let's not waste any more time."

"Yeah, yeah." I nodded in agreement.

I wasn't going to be wasting any time at all. I had a plan for how the Games was going to go down and it was full-proof. All my time was going to be used effectively. In no time at all, Sapphire Taric was going to announce me as the victor of the Sixth Quarter Quell.

* * *

**Raven Bell's POV – District 8 Female**

"… So that's it?" I asked quietly.

My stylist, Lulu, nodded in response. She had led me to an extremely small, cramped room. The only thing of note was a steel plate in the center of the room and an open hole above it. It really didn't seem like much, but I knew that it was how I was going to get into the arena. That made it very notable to me, memorable to me… and absolutely terrifying to me.

_Deep breaths Raven! Deep… breaths…_

I wouldn't be lying if I said that a part of me was _a little_ excited about entering the Hunger Games just to see some new scenery. Life in the luxury of the Capital was kinda nice at first, but then it got kinda dull fast, got lonely without my family, and got horrible after the training sessions. Most of my time in the Capital felt like it was wasted. I was more than excited to get out of that big city and just be able to go somewhere else.

Having said that, I was still terrified about entering the arena and having to fight for my life. I was also equally terrified about having to become a killer just to get out…

Growing up, my father taught me a lot of important lessons. He was a peacekeeper and most people looked at them negatively, but he was one of the ones who really did care about 'keeping peace' and protecting the people. He taught me about the importance of human life. It felt like I would have to dishonor everything he taught me, just to be able to come back home and see him and everyone else again…

Then again, he did tell me to fight when he talked to me in the Justice Building. They all want me to fight. Maybe they won't judge me if I have to make a kill or two to come back!

… The question is, though, will I be able to not judge myself after I make my kills?

"Don't be too anxious Raven." Lulu told me as she approached me and put her hand on my back. I guess she noticed that I was feeling nervous. "You'll do fine in the arena. I promise!"

"Thanks. I think I will." I replied with a smile. "… I hope at least."

"There's no need to 'hope'. You're gonna do great and I know it!" My stylist declared stubbornly.

A more sincere smile developed on my face. If nothing else, Lulu was a very kind woman. Even if she was unusually short and had purple hair, she was very polite and optimistic. It was infectious and she was part of the reason why I had high hopes for the Games.

I was only a fourteen year old girl. I had so many plans and aspirations for my life and the Capital was trying to take me away from them. They were even trying to take my best friend's life with me. Well, the Capital was going to realize that I can be very stubborn when I want to be and I did not appreciate _at all_ their attempts to take everythin9g me. I was going to do everything I could to make sure I maintained everything and that Carolina was going to be okay.

I opened my mouth to respond to Lulu's encouragement, but I stopped when a loud voice spoke through an intercom system.

"Attention all tributes. Please step on the plate in the transport room. In exactly one minute, we will bring you all to the arena." The voice declared.

Immediately, the confidence I was just feeling disappeared. I took a deep breath and gulp as I walked over to the plate.

_It's showtime Raven._

* * *

**Jason Icarus's POV – District 9 Male**

"Good luck Jason!" Nami, my stylist, told me.

I waved goodbye nervously as I walked her walk out of the room. With her gone, I was now alone. A cold sweat covered my face and I felt a deep lump within my throat. I could also feel a strong urge to throw up on the spot.

Time went by slowly. The voice on the intercom said that it would be only one minute, but it felt more like one hour. Each passing second felt like an eternity and I could feel myself growing sicker and sicker, because once this eternity passed, it was going to be time for the Hunger Games.

The Games were a symbol for everything I was morally against. I hated bloodshed and violence. I hated suffering and death. I hated the corrupt influence of the Capital. Up until to now, even since the reaping, I've been able to see them as this far-away, evil creation. Now, this 'evil' was up close and personal and it was threatening to end my life and Lacy's life. The thought of dying and Lacy getting murdered right afterwards was enough to make me start crying…

_Just think of that little boy._ I repeated that mantra in my head, hoping it would calm me down. After seeing the competition, after meeting the careers and Logan, I knew for a fact that he would be dead. I saved his life and the life of one of his parents. That was what I was going to tell myself during my suffering in the arena. At least I was muscular and stood a chance to get out of the arena.

_I hope at least…_

Finally, the eternity passed and a glass cylinder came through the hole in the ceiling. It surrounded my body, trapping me inside. My hands touch the inside desperately and my breathing intensified. I was by no means claustrophobic, but right now, I was scared and trapped. I just wanted to get out…

My hands then move towards the necklace around my neck in comfort. It was my district token: a gift Lacy made years ago. Her family was one of the poorest families in the district and could barely afford anything, but she was able to save enough money to buy a few beads to make one for me and our other best friend John. We always wore our necklaces as a symbol of friendship. We told each other that, if any of us were in trouble and separated from each, we could reach for the necklace and know that the others were going to be with us.

I never imagined being separated from them, but now I understand what the purpose was really for: it was in case if any of us were put into the arena. My hand tightened onto it. Lacy and John were going to be with me in spirit in the arena. They were going to give me the strength to get out of the arena somehow.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes as I thought back about both of my friends. By the time I opened my eyes, I found myself face-to-face with the arena.

* * *

**Maddison Holland's POV – District 10 Female**

I hated wasting time, so I had planned to study the arena during the countdown to map out a basic plan for the Games. As soon as my cylinder reached the arena and opened it, I took a long look at the arena and asked myself one simple question: _where the hell am I?_

My eyes scanned the arena, trying to figure out what I was going to face. What I noticed were a bunch of ruined, white buildings scattered throughout the land. Some of the buildings were intact, but most were nothing more than rubble. A few of the ones that were still standing were rather large and looked almost like large houses. There were large pillars. I noticed that a circle formation of pillars surrounded the steel cornucopia at the very center. All of the buildings and rubble were connected by a series of stone roads. There was absolutely no green in the immediate sight.

I then started to scan out into the distance. Away from all of the rubble and the cornucopia, I saw some green. There was obviously some forest surrounding the area. I could also see the ocean in the distance. Were we on an island of some sort?

I turned my head as I continued to study the arena. My eyes widened at the sight of what was directly behind me. There was an absolutely massive volcano in the far distance. I could see smoke flowing out of the vent of the volcano. I have never seen a volcano before, not even in the past Hunger Games, but I knew about them from schoolwork and I could tell immediately that it was active. There was no doubt in my mind that the thing was going to erupt at some point during the Games.

_Have to stay away from that thing as long as I can, otherwise I'm gonna be nothin' more than a pile of ash._ I had an initial plan to hide in the most dangerous spot in the arena and sustain myself there, but I wasn't going to be doing that at a volcano. I didn't know when that thing was gonna blow and I needed to make sure I _far_ was away from it when it did.

The arena had taken me completely by surprise, but after I studied it all, I felt relieved. I remembered watching all sorts of Hunger Games arenas. I had seen a few Games that had a 'ruins' theme and I knew a few things about the arena environments that I could use to my advantage. There were plenty of places I could hide and there were tools of rubble that I could use as a weapon if necessary. This arena was going to be something I could work with.

However, I knew that this arena wasn't a simple 'ruins style arena'. This was a Quarter Quell. There was more to this arena than what was visible to the eye. That made me very suspicious of what the Gamemakers had planned with this thing.

"Tributes of the One Hundred Fiftieth Hunger Games: welcome." A loud voice spoke from the sky. I recognized it immediately as the voice of the Head Gamemaker: Damien Brand. "Welcome to the ruined city of Pompeii!"

Pompeii? So this place had a name? Was this a Gamemakers invention or were we actually at some city ruins?

I shook my head immediately. I guess it didn't matter where we were. All that mattered was that I got out of this arena alive. I cracked my hands and put on a confident grin, hoping that my family was watching. Hopefully, they'd see me as 'confident' and wouldn't worry too much about me.

_Mom, Dad, Leon, Judd, Dustin… I'm comin' home y'all. _I spent my time thinking of my family as the countdown began.

* * *

**Bane Darnell's POV – District 11 Male**

"Sixty… Fifty-nine… Fifty-eight… Fifty-seven… Fifty-six…"

After studying the arena, my eyes turned towards the cornucopia. I studied all of the possible tools in the arena. There was a massive variety of weaponry at the very center: swords, axes, hammers, bows with arrows, scythes, explosives, etc. So many different tools to kill off the competition. I'm sure the Career Pack was already eyeing the center greedily, ready to get there hands on something and begin the killing.

The center was the last place I wanted to be. Luckily, I was only shooting for a backpack of supplies and a simple dagger: nothing close to the center. As long as I was fast, I shouldn't be in the cornucopia for too long and I'd find my way out of the bloodbath completely unscathed.

"Fifty-five… Fifty-four… Fifty-three… Fifty-two… Fifty-one…"

My eyes turned to look towards the other tributes. I was standing in between Raven Bell and Stephanie Volk. Both girls looked anxious and nervous and I noticed Stephanie eyeing her two allies, Ethan Neurus and Icarus Bolt, both of whom were on the other side of cornucopia.

There were not many careers located near me. Only Ariail Bardineux was close to me, and he wasn't eying any tribute in particular. His eyes never looked towards me, which was a relief. He wasn't going to go for me. He had 'bigger fish' to fry and wouldn't waste the time on me.

It was going to be my duty to make sure he regrets that decision…

"Fifty… Forty-nine… Forty-eight… Forty-seven… Forty-six…"

There were multiple plans I had made for how I would handle the actual Hunger Games. Although the 'ruined city' was not an ideal environment for most of my plans, I could see the forests in the distance. Once I made it out of the bloodbath, reaching those forests was going to be my first priority. I had to get there fast, though. I could imagine the forest becoming a crowded location for the tributes. I wanted to get as much of a head-start as possible to check for natural herbs and poisons before anyone else could.

"Forty-five… Forty-four… Forty-three… Forty-two… Forty-one…"

Worse come to worse, though, I could always head to the volcano. I would have be careful in case of an eruption, but I'm certain there was something poisonous there that I could use for some of my poisons.

_Perhaps I would head there first anyway._ Not many tributes would head in that direction early. It made sense to head in that direction if I wanted to avoid early confrontation. If my uncle was put into this arena, that was probably where he would head to after he got out of the bloodbath.

"Forty… Thirty-nine… Thirty-eight… Thirty-seven… Thirty-six…"

The lessons my father and uncle put me through ran through my head. All the tips they told me on how to survive the arena came to mind. I was never more grateful for the advice than I was right now. Just from looking at the faces of some of the other tributes, I could see quite a few of them looking nervous and confused. I'm sure they didn't have a full thought-out plan. I had a few things worked out already and I knew that all of these plans were going to help keep me alive…

It was weird to think like that, though. It felt sickening to imagine that twenty-three of us were going to be dead soon… and I could easily be part of that statistic.

"Thirty-five… Thirty-four… Thirty-three… Thirty-two… Thirty-one…"

I had attempted to live my life without any regrets in case if I were ever reaped, but as I stand here facing the potential of death face-to-face, I realized I had so many. I regretted not repairing my image in District Eleven. I regretted not spending more time with my mother and my grandparents and I wished I could tell them how much I appreciated them. I regretted only knowing my uncle through Hunger Games training and never getting to know him as a person. And I regretted my relationship with my father… especially considering there was a chance I was going to get him killed with me.

However, there was a chance these were pointless regrets. My 'death' wasn't certain just yet. Therefore, I had to get out of this arena alive. Dying was not an option. Period.

* * *

**Emery Aspen's POV – District 12 Female**

"Thirty… Twenty-nine… Twenty-eight… Twenty-seven… Twenty-six…"

"Twenty-five… Twenty-four… Twenty-three… Twenty-two… Twenty-one…"

_Can time just hurry up already?_ These were the most painful seconds of my life! All I wanted to do was rush into the cornucopia, get my shit, and get out with my allies. Was that too much?

Possibly. There was a dark feeling that covered the whole area. I could feel the bloodlust radiating from some of the other tributes. Some of these guys were going to try and kill right at the beginning. I told myself I would kill to get back home, but I didn't think I would be able to kill someone right off in the bloodbath. However, many of the tributes around me seemed to be ready.

In particular Psycho…

"Twenty… Nineteen… Eighteen… Seventeen… Sixteen…"

I couldn't help but think about the creepy District Ten boy. He was standing on the platform next to mine, along with the boy from District Nine, Jason. I noticed the way the creepy fucker was eyeing one of the scythes in the cornucopia and I knew exactly what he was going to do with it once he got a hold of it. I was tempted to just grab a knife on the outer edges of the cornucopia just in case he got to his scythe before I got a weapon and tried to attack me with it. If I was weaponless against him, I would be dead. No if's, and's, or but's.

Oh, I was definitely going to have a weapon. If we ever had to fight against each other, I would have a spear in my hands and I would use it to murder him. Maybe I'd feel bad about killing the other tributes, but not him. That psycho deserved death.

"Fifteen… Fourteen… Thirteen… Twelve… Eleven…"

Quickly, I turned my attention away from Logan and looked for my allies. Kaylee and Yaro were standing on platforms next to each other! That's pretty damn coincidental. The two were also pretty close to me. We could hopefully meet up with each other rather quickly and get our shit together. Safety in numbers was a thing and together, we could all get out of the bloodbath and get out into the arena.

Once we get out, we can actually start working together and begin hunting or something. We can actually begin doing things that'll get us out of the arena alive.

… Or, should I say, me.

"Ten… Nine… Eight… Seven… Six…"

It probably made me a bad person, but I had already imagined how Yaro and Kaylee were going to die. It was going to have to happen at some point if I wanted to get out of the Games alive. Therefore, I was going to have to betray them both at some point. It would probably be at the final ten. Somewhere around then. I knew, though, that it was going to be hard to do. Although I still didn't like Kaylee, Yaro and I had become pretty close. It felt wrong to have such a nice, funny guy die in that way. He was a good guy and didn't deserve his fate.

But then again, this was the Hunger Games. How many truly good guys actually came out of the Hunger Games alive?

"Five…"

I knew that I probably wasn't considered a nice person. I've been called a bitch amongst other things by many people in District Twelve. Perhaps I didn't deserve to make it out the arena, but I knew I had the drive to get out alive. I was willing to kill. I would do anything to get out alive.

"Four…"

My parents and Aiden were watching right now. I looked around for a camera, but I realized that was pointless. We weren't supposed to think about this as a television show. There weren't going to be any reminders of that. Sooner or later, I would probably forget and think of this as actual real life… a hellish life.

"Three…"

There was no camera to look to, but I put on a small smile on my lips in attempt to calm my family and Aiden down. I didn't want them to worry about me too much. They were all probably scared and nervous about me, but I didn't want them to worry. I was tough and I definitely stood a chance to get out of the arena. Hopefully they realized that as well!

"Two…"

It was almost finally time. I got into position to start sprinting the second the countdown ended. _Stay calm Emery. Stay strong._ I needed to meet up with Yaro and Kaylee, grab a weapon, and get the fuck out of here.

"One…"

_Game time Emery. For Aiden's sake, don't fuck up!_

"**Let the One Hundred and Fiftieth Hunger Games – the Sixth Quarter Quell begin!"**

"**May you all burn to the ground!"**

* * *

**Author's Note: **Oh geez... This chapter took longer than I had expected. I'm sorry for making you all wait! I was just busy with a bunch of things in my real life: both serious and non-serious. But everything has cleared up for now at least, so I had the time to finally get this chapter out for all of you! :)

So yeah... This was the final chapter before the bloodbath. Everyone had one last point-of-view before shit starts to hit the fan.

I have the bloodbath mapped out... and I have to apologize in advance to the creators of any of the tributes that are going to die. I honestly am in love with all the tributes you all gave me. I have such a collective, amazing group and everyone who dies is going to be missed. It's going to pain me to kill a few so soon... but it has to happen for some of them. Again, I want to apologize... but I hope you enjoy the plans I have and the story I have ready for you!

So yeah. I'm going to begin working on the bloodbath right now! I'll be seeing you all the second I finish it! :)


End file.
